Restoration Teaser

“Nessie, why don’t you come with me and we’ll get some candy from the vending machine,” Carlisle smiled, offering her his hand.

“I want to stay with my Daddy,” Nessie grumped.

“Vanessa Lynn, go with Mr. Carlisle,” Jacob said sternly, kissing her forehead. “We’ll go out for lunch after we talk, okay?”

“Anywhere you want, Miss Nessie,” Marcus grinned. “My treat.”

“Gameworks?” Nessie asked.

“It’s a date, Miss Nessie. You’ll have to show me your mad skills with Dance, Dance Revolution. I’m the reigning champion in the Volturi family,” Marcus said with pride.

“You think your all that,” Bella quipped. “I beat you the last time we had a staff outing, Marcus.”

Marcus glowered at Bella, causing Nessie to giggle. Bella held out her fist to Nessie, who promptly bumped it. With a kiss to Jacob’s cheek, Nessie went with Carlisle while Essie stayed in the conference room.

“Marcus, what did you find out about Leah?” Jacob asked once Nessie was out of the room. “And why can’t I take her home?”

“Our private detectives, working in concert with the Port Angeles Police Department, found out about Leah’s boyfriend. He is a drug dealer. He’s using Leah’s apartment as his stash house. What we’re trying to find out is if Leah is using drugs. If she is, her visitation rights will be permanently revoked and possibly, her parental rights removed. Additionally, Leah’s boyfriend is also on the sex offender registry. His flavor of choice is little boys, but in my mind and in Bella’s opinion, we refused to put Nessie back into that environment, even if it was supervised,” Marcus explained.

“But, why can’t I take her home? Leah is most likely going to lose her parental rights. I want to take my baby girl home with me and start fresh,” Jacob said, his arms crossed over his massive chest.

“Jacob, Nessie has finally settled into her new school. She has friends and a support system with Carlisle, Essie and their daughter, Alice. Not to mention you. I’m not a psychologist, but uprooting her now, especially since she will be losing her mother, would be detrimental for her. It would be best to keep her with the Cullen’s, letting her finish out the school year with them. There’s only a few months left,” Bella reasoned.

“Why do I think there’s more?” Jacob asked, narrowing his eyes at Bella.

“The statement about a fresh start,” she responded, staring back at him. “Knowing what you do now, do you want to take your daughter and run?”

“Honestly? Yes,” Jacob said, his brows furrowed. “But, I also want to be divorced from that bitch.”

“As a parent, though, you want to ensure the safety of your daughter. You want to take her away from the dangers in life. In this case, your ex-wife and her creepy boyfriend,” Bella rationalized. “It’s my job to look out for Nessie. That’s why Marcus asked me to represent her. You are not thinking with your head, but your heart and your fear. I get it. I do, but this is what’s best for her. You can see her every day, every night.” Bella gave Jacob a smirk.

“Shit. You know I’ve spending nights at the Cullen’s,” Jacob grumbled.