For those of you who read the Get Your Southern On contest entries, this is my contribution. I am tickled at the results ... first place in public vote and third place for the judge's choice. I've decided to break this up into smaller, drabblish chapters and it will be continued. The contest contribution is the first six or so chapters, roughly. I don't know how long it will be, but I do have it planned. Thank you to Bridget for betaing this for me and for Clo, who created the banner.
Thank you for those of you who have read this! I hope you continue to do so! Without further ado ...
This is the beginning of the extension of the original contest entry. ALL NEW! Thank you for sticking with me and I hope you enjoy this!
Next chapter will be dinner with the kids, some lemony goodness back at the house and going to Busch Gardens.
"Miss Bella, what's your favorite cheesecake?" Lucy asked as they walked through the mall to The Cheesecake Factory. "Mine's Reese's Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake."
"That sounds good, but I love vanilla bean cheesecake," Bella smiled. Lucy's hand was in Bella's, skipping happily along with her. "But, we can split a piece of Reese's for dessert. I haven't had that one."
"Yay!" Lucy squealed.
Behind Bella and Lucy, Edward and Liam trailed slowly. Edward was waiting for Liam to talk to him about why he was being so rude to Bella. "Are you going to make good choices, Liam? I'm disappointed in how you're acting right now. You know that Miss Bella is special to me."
"I'll be good," Liam said, his voice flat.
Edward stopped him, calling to Bella. "Can you get a table for us, sweetness?" he asked Bella.
"Sure," Bella said, walking toward the restaurant.
"Liam, what's going on with you? I know that you are hesitant to trust people, especially women, but you've never been disrespectful. You may not like Miss Bella, but she's an adult and you need to respect her," Edward said, crouching down in front of his scowling son. "The way you are acting is not showing respect."
"I don't like her," Liam hissed.
"You don't know her to make that statement," Edward argued. He pinched his nose and blew out a breath. "Liam, I mean it that if you can't be respectful to Miss Bella, you won't be going to Busch Gardens with us."
"Dad!" Liam whined. "That's not fair. Why can't Lucy, you and me go to Busch Gardens? Leave Miss Bella at home."
Edward pursed his lips and glared at his son. "I'm not even going to dignify that with a response. You're on warning and Busch Gardens is completely up to you. Make good choices. Give Miss Bella a chance before you say you don't like her. Am I clear?" Liam mumbled under his breath. "I didn't hear you, Liam. Do you understand what I'm saying?"
"Yes, sir," Liam said, his green eyes filling with tears. Edward took his son's hand and led him to the restaurant. Bella and Lucy were seated outside since it was a perfect evening. Liam sat next to his sister, pouting and huffing loudly. Edward sat next to Bella, kissing her temple.
"Everything okay?" Bella asked.
"We hope so. Right, bud?" Edward responded, poking Liam in his side.
"Yeah," Liam said, quietly. He picked up the kid's menu and crayons that Bella grabbed for the two kids, drawing on the paper.
"I ordered you some lemonade, Liam. Lucy said it was your favorite," Bella said, giving him a hopeful smile. Liam shrugged. The waitress came, delivering their drinks and taking their food order.
"What do you say, Liam?" Edward sighed, his frustration mounting because of his sullen son.
"Thanks."
Edward clenched his hand into a fist, but Bella twined her fingers with his. "It's okay, Edward," she said. "Anyway, Lucy was telling me all these interesting facts about the human body. She said that you shared them when you were at the field trip at MOSI."
"Daddy knew all sorts of things. He saved Seth," Lucy chirped, smiling widely. "Seth is back in school and he's doing awesome. And he's my shoulder partner in class with Mrs. Prendergast. We worked on spelling today in school. Seth is really good at spelling. He won the spelling bee for our class."
"What are you good at in school?" Bella asked.
"Math, science and art," Lucy answered. "Daddy, you have to show Miss Bella the picture I painted for your office at the hospital! It's a sunset. I used all my favorite colors! Pink, purple, orange, red and yellow!"
"I hope I can see it," Bella smiled. "What about you, Liam? What are your favorite subjects in school?"
"Music and gym," Liam answered.
"Liam is really good at the piano, Miss Bella," Lucy supplied. "Nana says he can learn anything by ear. Daddy, what does that mean? By ear?"
"It means that Liam can just listen to something and play it without having the music in front of him," Edward explained. "Not many people have that talent. Not even me."
"Daddy, you have to use music?" Lucy asked, her eyes wide.
"I'm good at the piano and I've pulled out my guitar, but I need to have music," Edward chuckled. "Liam, why don't you tell Miss Bella your favorite song." Liam shook his head, focusing on the menu and unscrambling some words. "How did your interviews go, Bella?"
"So far so good," she smiled. "The interview at the University of Tampa is the early contender. In addition to working in the library, I'd also be able to do some teaching on campus."
"You're a teacher?" Liam asked.
"I can teach," Bella said. "But, I work in a library in Seattle and I'm hoping to find a job here in Tampa, doing something similar."
"But, you work with kids?" Liam questioned.
"I have, Liam. I spent some time in the children's section of my library, but mostly I work in non-fiction," Bella said. "Do you like to read, Liam?"
"A little," he said, going back to his drawing.
"He reads all of the time," Lucy giggled. "And he likes to read to me. When Daddy is at work at night, Liam reads us our bedtime story. Nana does it most of the time, but Liam reads a lot, too."
"Dad, I need to go to the bathroom," Liam said, his shoulders hunched. Edward got up, taking him away. He shot Bella a look, frowning at Liam's reaction.
"Miss Bella, I don't know why Liam's being ..." Lucy trailed off. "I'm sorry. I like you. I think you're pretty and you make my daddy happy."
"I think you're pretty and very, very sweet, Lucy," Bella said, grinning at the precious little girl seated next to her. "And I really care about your Daddy. We knew each other in high school and he's very special to me."
"Maybe you can be our new mommy," Lucy said quietly, looking up at Bella expectantly.
Bella blinked a few times. She knew that meeting the kids was a huge step. She didn't think that Lucy would say something like that. She loved Edward and she could love his children, but this was the first time she'd met them. Isn't it early to be thinking about being mommy? Bella smiled, taking Lucy's hand and kissing her cheek. "I hope so, sweet girl. But for now, I'd love to be your friend and get to know you better. You can tell me anything."
"Anything?" Lucy asked. Bella nodded. "I think my Daddy is going to marry you and you'll be my mommy." She scrambled off the chair and climbed onto Bella's lap. She snuggled into her arms, hugging Bella tightly. "That's my wish. I wish and pray, every night, that I get a mommy. I love my daddy very much and I love Nana, but I want a mommy." She stayed in Bella's lap until Edward came back with Liam. Lucy kissed Bella's cheek, sitting back down and coloring her menu.
"You alright, sweetness?" Edward asked, brushing a curl away from Bella's cheek. "You look shell-shocked."
"I'll tell you later," she said, sipping her water. "It's nothing bad, but you should know."
"Ooookay," Edward said, arching a brow over his glasses. The food was delivered and they tucked into their meals. Lucy prattled on about her day at school. Liam joined in, occasionally, because they'd had specials with music and gym during the day. Dinner was wrapped up and cheesecake was shared. Bella and Lucy shared the Reese's Peanut Butter Cup cheesecake. Edward ate most of a piece of key lime cheesecake that Liam wanted to try, but didn't like.
After dinner, Edward drove them to the park near his house. Liam and Lucy took off in the twilight, giggling and running to some of their friends. Edward, who was holding Bella's hand, strolled to one of the picnic tables. "I'm so sorry about Liam. He eventually warmed up to you. Sort of," he muttered, giving Bella a grimace.
"He tolerated me," Bella snorted. "But, I'm okay."
"Lucy adored you, though," Edward beamed. "She was in your lap and so cute." However, Bella's eyes widened, and the shell-shocked look returned. "Okay, talk to me. Why do you look panicked?"
"I think that Lucy ... she said that she wanted me to be her new mommy," Bella breathed. "I mean, I get that she needs a female figure in her life. She says that she prays for a new mommy. The look in her eyes, she wants it to be me. She said I make you happy."
"You make me more than happy, Bella," he said, twining their fingers together. "But, what did Lucy say? Exactly?" Bella told him the conversation with Lucy and he listened intently.
"I hope I didn't overstep in my response," Bella murmured.
"No, you did perfectly," he said. "I just never realized how much not having a mother impacted my Luce. Do you think I should take her to see a therapist?"
"You're asking me?" Bella squeaked. "I don't have a say."
"You do have a say," Edward said, looking at his children as they played with several neighborhood kids. "Like it or not, you know how Lucy and Liam feel. Did Charlie take you to a therapist?"
"He didn't, but in retrospect, he probably should have," Bella sighed. "Obviously, Tanya abandoning your children is impacting them. Lucy is overly affectionate with me, a total stranger, while Liam is like me, not trusting of anyone." She looked at the two children, wishing that she could make the pain of the mother not wanting them away.
"I think you should tell them about your mom," Edward whispered.
"I disagree," she said, looking at him. "What happened with them is entirely different than what happened with me. What I can do is be there for them and for you."
Edward cupped her cheek, tracing her smooth skin with his thumb. "I love you, Bella. It's nice to talk to someone about this, other than my parents. I do my best to be mom and dad, but they need more. I will do some research about a therapist who can help them." Leaning forward, he kissed her tenderly. "You still planning on spending the night?"
"I don't have a bag. I think that with as frosty as the reception I received from Liam, it may be best that I don't stay over. I'll pack a bag for tomorrow, but I do have plans to go out for lunch with my dad and his girlfriend on Sunday," Bella said.
"Your dad has a girlfriend?" Edward asked, his brows shooting to his hairline.
"A dispatcher named Sue Clearwater," Bella answered. "I met her this afternoon. She seems nice. But, I promised to go out with them Sunday afternoon for lunch."
"I was hoping to spend some time alone with you," Edward murmured, running his finger along Bella's arm. "I missed you. I love being with you and with my kids, but I want some adult time with my gorgeous girlfriend."
"We'll get our alone time," Bella purred, picking up his hand and nibbling on his fingers. "I promise and I'm a woman of my word." She kissed Edward, suckling on his bottom lip. "You had your time to play in Seattle. This trip? It's mine."
Yes!
A/N: Aaaaaaaaaaand we're back. I'm so sorry about the delay in updates, but as I said in my last one and in the author's note, I couldn't maintain the updating schedule with my new job. I'm focusing on ONE story. I finished Buying Love and So You Think You Can Dance, now focusing on this one.
Pictures of the mall and The Cheesecake Factory are on my blog. Link for that is on my profile. I'm also on Facebook: Tufano79's Twilight Fanfiction Appreciation. Twitter, too: tufano79.
Up next will be the trip to Busch Gardens and leading up to some citrusy times. The plan for this story is currently undergoing a metamorphosis. The original plan is not working for me, but I think you'll like what I've got going in my head. Leave me some loving :-)