One Night Only

Twenty-Eight

Carlisle graciously offered me his private jet to fly out to Los Angeles. I thanked him and apologized profusely for my behavior in his office a couple of hours ago. He brushed it off, stating that I had every right be be defensive and that he should've treaded a little more delicately with his approach. I still felt terrible but he vehemently assured me that everything was fine between us and would always remain that way. I even spoke to Esme, who was over the moon with excitement to be a grandmother. She admitted that she was upset with Edward for not telling me the truth about Tanya when we became serious but she respected his wishes to not speak of it out of turn. She further explained that Edward was going to tell me but when my father had a stroke and I had to go away, he decided to put it off because the timing would be inappropriate due to Charlie's precarious state.

"I feel like such a fool," I sniffled into the receiver. Tears were pouring freely down my face and my heart ached.

"Bella, dear, listen to me. You're not a fool," Esme responded. Her voice was soft and comforting as she spoke. "In that moment, you felt betrayed. How you felt was undeniably relatable to any woman if they were in that situation. We as woman tend to run based off emotion. Men are a little more complex in that department. If I was in the same situation with Carlisle, I would be extremely hurt."

"I should've trusted him. I should've let him explain everything but I was scared. So scared that I was being lied to again and I shut down. Edward never made me question his trust and I ruined it by throwing everything we had away." I sobbed, caressing my belly. "What if he doesn't love me anymore? What if he doesn't want anything to do with me and the babies?" Saying those words aloud manifested in the air around me, almost suffocating in a way  and I couldn't fathom the possibility of my thoughts coming into fruition.

"That's complete nonsense! Edward is still very much in love with you and he will love his children," Esme proclaimed. The delivery of her words were strong and sure, not an ounce of doubt within them.

I held onto to those words and I felt a strong sense of hope. "Thank you, Esme."

"You're welcome, Bella. Now, go clean yourself up, pack your bags and be ready to leave in an hour. Our personal driver will pick you up and take you to a private airstrip where our jet will be fully fueled and ready for immediate takeoff."

"Please tell Carlisle I said thank you again."

Carlisle's voice bellowed from the background. "You're welcome! Go get our son back!"

I laughed, vowing that I would, no matter what it takes.

The six hour flight to Los Angeles seemed to drag on. I was anxious to get there, my stomach a bundle of knots. I couldn't eat anything for the fear of not being able to keep anything down. I was an utter mess throughout the whole trip and once the plane landed, I didn't want to get off.

"Bella, are you alright?" Alice stared at me, worry marring her features. I was thankful she came with me. I called her immediately after my phone call with the Cullens and with their approval, I asked her to come with me. I quickly explained everything to her and she came over bags in tow a few minutes before our driver arrived. Whatever the outcome of this excursion, I had her full support.

I took a deep breath and rose from my seat. "I'm nervous as fuck and a little nauseous, but I'll live." We exited the jet and found a car awaiting us just a few feet from the landing. The driver was placing our bags in the trunk when we approached the car.

The man closed the trunk and and greeted us. "Good evening Ms. Swan and Ms. Brandon, my name is Hudson and I'll be escorting you to your hotel." We exchanged pleasantries and before long we were in the backseat riding through Beverly Hills. Carlisle booked us a suite at The Peninsula, an extravagant five-star hotel, all on his dime. It made me uncomfortable to know the obscene amount he splurged on us but he insisted that it was something he wanted to do and that it wouldn't affect his bank account in the slightest.

Upon arriving at the hotel, Hudson dutifully retrieved our bags and passed them along to a bellhop dressed in a pristine white uniform, who welcomed us and came to our aid. Hudson bid us farewell and gave me his card with his private number for whenever we needed his services. Alice and I thanked him again and proceeded to follow the bellhop into the entrance of the hotel. The opulence of the lobby was spectacular. Everything exuded regality from the immaculate furnishings to the grandiose chandeliers that hung from the ceiling. I felt a little out of place but all in all, the place was classically beautiful. We checked in at the front desk and each given a room key before following another bellhop to the elevators up to our room.

On our floor, I went ahead of the bellhop and used my electronic key to open the door. The man wheeled our bags into the suite and Alice tipped him for his services. The man thanked us and said good night before quietly leaving the suite. The suite was reminiscent of a luxurious penthouse. Off the foyer was a powder room and within the suite was a separate living and dining room. The neural color schemes complemented the various artwork on the walls and the wooden parquet floors were polished to perfection. The king sized bedroom had a huge closet that was spacious enough for us both and a bathroom donned in marble. There was also French styled doors that opened up to a small balcony that overlooked the hotel's landscaped garden and fountain.

"This place is fucking fancy," I murmured.

"Yeah, really fucking fancy," Alice agreed. We looked at each other and burst in a fit of laughter. Apparently, I wasn't the only person who felt somewhat out of place. We were financially well off, but this was completely beyond what we could afford.

"I don't know about you but I'm extremely hungry," Alice said, walking into the living room.

The idea of food had my stomach rumbling. I hadn't eaten anything since this morning and I was to nervous to eat the plane ride. I rubbed my stomach and smiled. "We can definitely eat."

In-room service ran 24 hours, so we ordered gourmet burgers and banana splits for dessert. We freshened up, changed into our pajamas and when our food arrived, we sat in the living room and gorged on our late night meals and watched TV. It was after midnight before we called it a night and got ready for bed. Alice was going to sleep on the sofa bed and I would be sleeping in the bedroom. She wouldn't take my offer to sleep with me in the bedroom because she was a wild sleeper and only Jasper could handle it. I laughed but complied to her wishes.

"Goodnight Al," I  said, kissing her on the cheek.

"Goodnight Bella." She kissed me on the cheek and caressed my belly, "And goodnight, little ones." I smiled and kissed her on the cheek once more and went to the bedroom, closing the door behind me. I got in bed, sighing in pleasure at the softness of the sheets. The bed itself was supremely comfortable and plush, molding to my body in the right places. I felt completely relaxed and it didn't take long for to feel the stirring of drowsiness within me. The final thought I had before I succumbed to sleep was Edward and what the future would hold for us and if there would ever be an us again.