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Bella ended up staying in the hospital for two days. She was more dehydrated than anticipated and malnourished because she was throwing up everything she ate. The baby was fine, but was sucking the life out of her. Marcus wanted to put Bella on medical leave until after little sparrow was born. She would still act as a consultant, but would be able to do that from home and she would not step into a courtroom until she was ready.

She put the kibosh on that quickly.

“I’m pregnant. Not handicapped,” Bella reasoned.

Marcus said that if she needed time off, he’d gladly give it to her. She did take a week off after her stint in the hospital since she was still weak and dizzy. Edward catered to her, helping her in every way. She was grateful for his doting ways, but felt suffocated by all of the hovering. In addition to Edward’s help, Kate hung out when she wasn’t in classes. Garrett randomly stopped by, bringing over Bella’s favorite foods – which made her nauseous more than anything. Esme and Carlisle even popped in. Bella knew that they were all concerned because of her outburst in the hospital, the fact that her pregnancy was high risk and congratulating both Edward and Bella on their engagement, but she was feeling stifled.

When she was feeling better, she went back into the office and dove headlong into a new case just to get away from the revolving door of well-wishers and overprotective fiancés. At the end of the week, Marcus leaned against the doorjamb of Bella’s office. “I’m glad you’re feeling better, Swan, but you’ve got a lot of family members who are concerned about you,” Marcus quipped.

“They’re the reason why I’m hiding out in here,” Bella said, taking off her reading glasses. “I love them all, but they are treating me like I’m made of glass. Yes, I had a dizzy spell and an overemotional reaction to finding out that I’m pregnant. I’m not crazy.”

“Bellisima, I know you’re not crazy. They know you’re not crazy, but they love you. We all do. Right now, you need to take care of you. And if that’s having a heart-to-heart with the people in your life right now, then so be it. However, they are all there for you because they want the best for you and your mini sparrow or whatever Edward calls your baby. He called me today.”

“Edward?” Bella asked, her brow furrowed.

“Yeah. He’s afraid that you don’t want to get married,” Marcus said, sitting on the corner of Bella’s desk.

“What? Of course, I do. I want nothing more than to be his wife, but with everything I have on my plate,” Bella argued.

“Bella, I’m saying this as your business partner, your boss and your friend. This doesn’t matter. All of this,” he gestured to the pile of files on her desk for an overseas adoption, “is small potatoes. I love you like a daughter, Bella. You are an amazing attorney and I’m honored to have you as my partner. Right now, though, you need to be with your family, your fiancé. Until after your mini-penguin is born, you are on medical leave.”

Restoration Teaser

Bella ended up staying in the hospital for two days. She was more dehydrated than anticipated and malnourished because she was throwing up everything she ate. The baby was fine, but was sucking the life out of her. Marcus wanted to put Bella on medical leave until after little sparrow was born. She would still act as a consultant, but would be able to do that from home and she would not step into a courtroom until she was ready.

She put the kibosh on that quickly.

“I’m pregnant. Not handicapped,” Bella reasoned.

Marcus said that if she needed time off, he’d gladly give it to her. She did take a week off after her stint in the hospital since she was still weak and dizzy. Edward catered to her, helping her in every way. She was grateful for his doting ways, but felt suffocated by all of the hovering. In addition to Edward’s help, Kate hung out when she wasn’t in classes. Garrett randomly stopped by, bringing over Bella’s favorite foods – which made her nauseous more than anything. Esme and Carlisle even popped in. Bella knew that they were all concerned because of her outburst in the hospital, the fact that her pregnancy was high risk and congratulating both Edward and Bella on their engagement, but she was feeling stifled.

When she was feeling better, she went back into the office and dove headlong into a new case just to get away from the revolving door of well-wishers and overprotective fiancés. At the end of the week, Marcus leaned against the doorjamb of Bella’s office. “I’m glad you’re feeling better, Swan, but you’ve got a lot of family members who are concerned about you,” Marcus quipped.

“They’re the reason why I’m hiding out in here,” Bella said, taking off her reading glasses. “I love them all, but they are treating me like I’m made of glass. Yes, I had a dizzy spell and an overemotional reaction to finding out that I’m pregnant. I’m not crazy.”

“Bellisima, I know you’re not crazy. They know you’re not crazy, but they love you. We all do. Right now, you need to take care of you. And if that’s having a heart-to-heart with the people in your life right now, then so be it. However, they are all there for you because they want the best for you and your mini sparrow or whatever Edward calls your baby. He called me today.”

“Edward?” Bella asked, her brow furrowed.

“Yeah. He’s afraid that you don’t want to get married,” Marcus said, sitting on the corner of Bella’s desk.

“What? Of course, I do. I want nothing more than to be his wife, but with everything I have on my plate,” Bella argued.

“Bella, I’m saying this as your business partner, your boss and your friend. This doesn’t matter. All of this,” he gestured to the pile of files on her desk for an overseas adoption, “is small potatoes. I love you like a daughter, Bella. You are an amazing attorney and I’m honored to have you as my partner. Right now, though, you need to be with your family, your fiancé. Until after your mini-penguin is born, you are on medical leave.”

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. 

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“We’re almost done with the restoration, Esme,” Garrett said. “I can’t believe how quickly we got this done.”

“We have the right impetus to get it done,” Essie smirked, waggling her brows. Garrett chuckled. “The furniture will be delivered tomorrow and that way, you’ll have the whole weekend to reunite with Bella. I’ve spoken with her and she hates deceiving Edward, but figured it would be the only way to make it work. They’ve been texting back and forth, but he’s hesitant to meet her and Bella is afraid that he’ll reject her.”

“Pfft,” Garrett snorted. “Once he sees her, he’ll crumble. He’ll swoop her into his arms and kiss her stupid. The fact that they’re talking says a lot. Okay, texting. Your conversation with him a couple of weeks ago really helped him understand what she was dealing with. And her conversation with Marcus helped her stop thinking so much. She’s following her heart. Speaking of Marcus, how’s that little girl you’re fostering?”

“She’s amazing. So sweet,” Essie smiled. “It’s so sad that she has to stay with us since her mom is an epic bitch.”

“Huh?”

“So, long story short, Nessie is the only child of this couple that is in the middle of this horrific custody battle. Nessie wanted to live with her Dad. Nessie’s mom said she’d rather drink hydrochloric acid than let her daughter stay with him. Nessie doesn’t feel safe with Mom since Mom’s boyfriend is a perv. Anyway, Bella came up with an alternative that both parties were agreeable to. Nessie is staying with us until the judge could make a decision about custody since mediation did not work. Hopefully by summer, Nessie will be back with her family, her dad. He wants full custody and for his ex-wife to have minimal supervised visitations,” Essie explained. “Marcus and Bella are working on finding Mom and boyfriend in the act of doing something stupid to make it happen. Their private detectives have been trailing them since the mediation.”

Jacob Black

Nessie Black

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Bella was in a meeting with Marcus, his client, Jacob Black and his daughter, Nessie. She felt her cell phone vibrate on the table. Picking it up, she recognized the number and the handsome face that went along with it. I miss you ~ E. She smiled softly, running her fingers down the picture of the most handsome man. “Is that your boyfriend?” asked Nessie.

“A friend,” Bella replied. “A very good friend.” She smiled at her young client, running her fingers through her dark, chocolate hair. Turning back to the phone, she responded. I miss you, too ~ B

“Bella, are we all set for our meeting with Mrs. Black with the mediators?” Marcus asked.

“Yes, Marcus. Nessie and I discussed at length what she wanted. I told her that she had three options. The first one was to stay with her grandparents in La Push while her parents figured out what was best,” Bella said. “But, their age and disabilities are significant challenges that can’t be ignored.”

“I don’t want to go there. It smells in their house,” Nessie grumbled. “Old and nasty.”

“The second option was to stay with her mother,” Bella said. Jacob growled at that. “Nessie said no to that, too. She told me about what happens at her mother’s house and I don’t feel like it would be an appropriate placement.”

“Mommy’s boyfriend looks at me funny,” Nessie shuddered. “Like he wants to kiss me.” Nessie was seven and clearly afraid of her mother’s boyfriend. Bella did not feel comfortable sending her into that environment.

“And the third option is to stay with you, Mr. Black,” Bella explained. “That’s what Nessie wanted, but I also prepared another option if your wife raises a ruckus. Nessie could stay with a friend of mine in Forks. It’s close to your parents in La Push and near your place of employment in Port Angeles. My friend, Esme Cullen and her husband, Carlisle, are upstanding members of the community. They have a teenaged daughter that just turned sixteen. They are registered foster parents with the state and have fostered children before.”

“I want to stay with you, Daddy,” Nessie pouted. “But, Miss Bella said that if Mommy is being mean, it could be a … What’s the word?”

“Compromise,” Bella laughed. 

Restoration Teaser

Bella was in a meeting with Marcus, his client, Jacob Black and his daughter, Nessie. She felt her cell phone vibrate on the table. Picking it up, she recognized the number and the handsome face that went along with it. I miss you ~ E. She smiled softly, running her fingers down the picture of the most handsome man. “Is that your boyfriend?” asked Nessie.

“A friend,” Bella replied. “A very good friend.” She smiled at her young client, running her fingers through her dark, chocolate hair. Turning back to the phone, she responded. I miss you, too ~ B

“Bella, are we all set for our meeting with Mrs. Black with the mediators?” Marcus asked.

“Yes, Marcus. Nessie and I discussed at length what she wanted. I told her that she had three options. The first one was to stay with her grandparents in La Push while her parents figured out what was best,” Bella said. “But, their age and disabilities are significant challenges that can’t be ignored.”

“I don’t want to go there. It smells in their house,” Nessie grumbled. “Old and nasty.”

“The second option was to stay with her mother,” Bella said. Jacob growled at that. “Nessie said no to that, too. She told me about what happens at her mother’s house and I don’t feel like it would be an appropriate placement.”

“Mommy’s boyfriend looks at me funny,” Nessie shuddered. “Like he wants to kiss me.” Nessie was seven and clearly afraid of her mother’s boyfriend. Bella did not feel comfortable sending her into that environment.

“And the third option is to stay with you, Mr. Black,” Bella explained. “That’s what Nessie wanted, but I also prepared another option if your wife raises a ruckus. Nessie could stay with a friend of mine in Forks. It’s close to your parents in La Push and near your place of employment in Port Angeles. My friend, Esme Cullen and her husband, Carlisle, are upstanding members of the community. They have a teenaged daughter that just turned sixteen. They are registered foster parents with the state and have fostered children before.”

“I want to stay with you, Daddy,” Nessie pouted. “But, Miss Bella said that if Mommy is being mean, it could be a … What’s the word?”

“Compromise,” Bella laughed. “We know that your wife is also spinning some sort of sordid tale to get Nessie back in her care. As Nessie’s lawyer, I think that this could be the best for all involved if that is thrown out there as a compromise. In regard to visitation, you can see her any time, no stipulations on when. For your wife, her boyfriend cannot come and the visitation will need to be supervised.”

Jacob

Nessie

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She just stared at Garrett, afraid to move. He walked toward her, seeing how much the end of their relationship that had affected her. Her hair was still limp and her eyes were red. She looked like a shadow of the woman he remembered. “Hey, Bella,” Garrett whispered. He wanted to enfold her in his arms and take all of her pain away.

“Garrett,” she choked out.

“Look, I know you’re busy, but I’d really like to talk to you,” Garrett murmured.

“I don’t know,” Bella said, walking to Marcus’s car. Garrett grabbed her hand gently. She turned to look at him and the sadness swirling in his eyes shattered her. She didn’t want to keep hurting them. “Why? Why do you want to talk to me? I’m poison.”

“You’re not, pretty girl,” Garrett said, cupping her cheek. She bit back a sob. “Please, can we talk? We can meet up? A bar? A restaurant? The Copes?” She laughed, looking up at him. “Please, Bella. I haven’t given up.”

“Why don’t we meet at Quinn’s Pub?” Bella suggested. “It’s close to my office.”

“Great,” Garrett smiled. “What time?”

“Seven?”

Garrett nodded, taking her hand and kissing her knuckles. “I’ll see you at seven.”

“Just you, right?” Bella verified. Garrett nodded again and turned on his heel, walking the same direction he came. Bella blinked a few times, tears tracking down her cold cheeks. Blowing out a breath, she got into Marcus’s car.

“Everything okay, Bellisima?” Marcus asked.

“I’m listening to my heart,” she whispered, looking over at her boss.

“Good girl,” Marcus beamed, pulling away from the curb. 

Quinn's Pub

Garrett

FYI ~ I will be out of town on business, leaving tomorrow morning and returning late in the evening on Saturday. There will be no teaser posted on Friday since I will not be bringing my computer, nor will I have access to the internet while I'm gone.  I will post a teaser upon my return. Keep your eyes peeled! Thank you for reading and I'll see you on Saturday. 

Restoration Teaser

She just stared at Garrett, afraid to move. He walked toward her, seeing how much the end of their relationship that had affected her. Her hair was still limp and her eyes were red. She looked like a shadow of the woman he remembered. “Hey, Bella,” Garrett whispered. He wanted to enfold her in his arms and take all of her pain away.

“Garrett,” she choked out.

“Look, I know you’re busy, but I’d really like to talk to you,” Garrett murmured.

“I don’t know,” Bella said, walking to Marcus’s car. Garrett grabbed her hand gently. She turned to look at him and the sadness swirling in his eyes shattered her. She didn’t want to keep hurting them. 

“Why? Why do you want to talk to me? I’m poison.”

“You’re not, pretty girl,” Garrett said, cupping her cheek. She bit back a sob. “Please, can we talk? We can meet up? A bar? A restaurant? The Copes?” She laughed, looking up at him. “Please, Bella. I haven’t given up.”

“Why don’t we meet at Quinn’s Pub?” Bella suggested. “It’s close to my office.”

“Great,” Garrett smiled. “What time?”

“Seven?”

Garrett nodded, taking her hand and kissing her knuckles. “I’ll see you at seven.”

“Just you, right?” Bella verified. Garrett nodded again and turned on his heel, walking the same direction he came. Bella blinked a few times, tears tracking down her cold cheeks. Blowing out a breath, she got into Marcus’s car.

“Everything okay, Bellisima?” Marcus asked.

“I’m listening to my heart,” she whispered, looking over at her boss.

“Good girl,” Marcus beamed, pulling away from the curb. 

Restoration Teaser

“Bella, I’m going to lunch and I was wondering if you would join me?” Marcus asked, leaning against the doorjamb of her office. “I’ve got a case that may need your tender loving care.”

“Sure, Marcus,” Bella said, saving her work on her laptop. She locked it and grabbed her coat, following her boss out to his sleek, black Jaguar.

She’d been back at her job for two weeks. Her body was still sore and in pain from the heartbreak she’d caused, but the distraction of work made it easier to forget, even if it was only during the day. At home, Bella drank heavily and cried herself to sleep at night. Seeing the house and the renovations that they did reminded her daily of how much they cared for her. On top of that, they still did nice things for her. Even though she’d been cold to them when they texted her, Edward and Garrett had taken down her Christmas decorations, leaving her a sweet little love note on the kitchen counter. She found that once she returned from New York, sending her into a tailspin of emotions. It made going over to the Banner’s home to end their relationship that much harder. Then, once she got back from Essie’s, she found another note in the lockbox in the garage along with her keys from Garrett.

We’re not giving up. I’m not giving up. What we had was too special … If you ever need either of us. Please call. We’ll always be there for you.
All my love,
Garrett

Thankfully, Essie was with her when she found that and kept her from doing something rash, like hurt herself or put her house on the market and moving to Antarctica with the penguins.

So, Bella was numb during the day and drunk at night, drowning her sorrows in scotch and other hard liquors. Anything to help her forget the safety and protection she received from Edward and Garrett.

“You’re awfully quiet, Bella,” Marcus chided gently while he drove through the streets of Seattle. Bella sighed, twisting her watch around her wrist, missing the bracelet that Edward and Garrett gave her. “I know that you had a rough time in New York, but I’m worried. You can talk to me, Bella.”

Marcus Volturi

Marcus's Jaguar