AN: Final chapter and I have to say goodbye to these two

I have to thank MeteorOnAMoonlessNight for always keeping one step ahead of me and making corrections to my word order and adding commas to make the whole thing make sense

Thanks also to MissLLIss15 who has pre-read and encouraged me with her sweet words.

And of course to everyone who has followed this story from the beginning and reviewed religiously each week.

Chapter 41

Epilogue Part 2

Now, Bella

I woke to filtered sunlight and whispered voices. For a second, I wasn't sure where I was until the sounds of the hospital filtered in through the closed doors. I sighed, wanting to be anywhere but here, even though I knew it was for the best.

As I shifted in the bed, a small hand patted my face. "Momma, you wokted up?" Lily's voice was whisper-loud. I opened my eyes to find hers positioned two inches in front of mine, her hands coming to rest on either side of my face. I reached out to hug her, while Edward stepped up beside the bed and held her little body slightly away from mine to make sure she didn't rest heavily on the twins. "You home soon, Momma?"

I sighed and kissed her forehead. "Soon, sweetheart. When Liam and Masen get here. They're almost ready to come out and meet you. Would you like that?"

At that moment, Shelly Cope, one of the day nurses, bustled into the room carrying a small covered dish. "You ready, Bella? This is the first step to meeting your babies." She held up the dish and headed over to the the side of the bed where set it down and took my wrist. After a minute she placed it back on the cover and patted it. "Heart rate is even. Now blood pressure."

Charlie soon became bored as Shelly continued with her small checks. "Dad, can we get some pancakes for breakfast?"

"Edward, why don't you take them for those chocolate chip pancakes they serve in the café next door? By the time you've finished, I'll be done." I scowled at the thought that I wouldn't be able to have one of their delicious coffees; I loved the smell, but the taste didn't agree with my stomach right now, not to mention the havoc it would play with my blood pressure.

Edward's soft smile told me that he knew what I was thinking. "I'll bring you back a tea, okay? Mom will be here in about thirty minutes, and then she'll take the kids back with her. I planned on getting back to have dinner with them, and then I'll be yours for the rest of the night." He leaned over and kissed my forehead and then my lips. I nodded and he grabbed Lily around the waist, lifting her into the air until she squealed a little too loudly for a hospital, and then took Charlie's hand. With a short wave from each of the children, I was alone with Shelly.

"I know you want to be out of here, Bella, and the best way to make sure it's three of you leaving together is for you to rest. The twins are a very good size already, and we aren't anticipating any problems with the c-section." She uncovered the small dish to reveal a syringe filled with a clear liquid. I swallowed and closed my eyes. I'd never been particularly good with injections. Shelly encouraged me to roll over and pulled back my nightgown.

I allowed my mind to drift back to our honeymoon, not noticing when she left.

~ oOo ~

When Edward had revealed the plans he'd made for us to take a road trip on the Ducati Rose and I had fallen in love with all those months ago, I was over the moon. We'd connected so deeply on our wedding night, and the week we used to travel to Florida cemented our relationship in a thousand different ways.

That first leg of the journey up to Indianapolis left me feeling stiff. Not having been on a motorcycle for any distance in many years, I wasn't altogether ready for the walk he suggested after dinner. However, with the promise of a massage later, I agreed. We held hands and walked to a local lake, kicking our way through the autumn leaves like a couple of kids.

As the evening cooled and night fell, we climbed the steps to the small hotel where we were staying and waved at the receptionist as we headed for the stairs to our room. On the coffee table in front of the sofa stood an ice bucket with a cooling bottle of champagne and a bowl of strawberries. The bedcovers were pulled back, the sheet covered with a large soft towel, and a bottle of oil stood on the nightstand. The lights had been turned down low, the curtains drawn, and the room was lit by scented candles.

"Wow." I gazed around at the setting. "You've been busy."

"The hotel staff have been very helpful." Edward gave me his signature smirked and held his hand out. "You like it, sweetheart?" His words were whispered in my ear as his lips descended on the skin of my neck. He pulled back and drew me over to the bed, setting about freeing me from my clothes while kissing each piece of skin as he bared it to his lips. Standing naked before him while he was still clothed was unexpectedly erotic and I shivered with pleasure, my nipples hardening under his gaze. "Lie down on your stomach, please."

I did as he asked and arranged myself on the bed, my body quivering in anticipation. I heard the rustle as he removed his clothes, his belt buckle hitting the floor, followed by the sound of his jeans sliding down his legs. It was only a moment later that the bed dipped and his warm body moved closer. The cap on the bottle of oil clicked open and his hands smoothed over the skin of my back from neck to ankle, down one side and up the other. Never ceasing, they massaged every bit of my skin until I was practically purring.

At his whispered request, I turned over, and he repeated the actions he'd carried out on my back, paying more attention to my legs and my stomach before reaching my breasts and nipples. He squeezed lightly, pinching and pulling at my nipples I was squirming. My hips arched toward him every time his hands ventured lower, small moans releasing themselves from my throat without prompting.

Eventually, he moved to kneel between my legs and I drew my knees up, placing my feet flat on the bed and allowing them to drop open. His eyes darkened as he took in the evidence of my desire, and he reached out to run two fingers on either side of my clit and then between my lips, delving inside me for a second. He repeated the action over and over until I was begging for him to touch me harder.

Lowering his head, his tongue followed the same route as his fingers, sucking my clit into his mouth for a second with each pass. "Please, Edward, stop teasing. I want you inside me, please."

I watched as he leaned back on his heels, stroking his cock while his fingers showed me where it belonged. His lips met mine as he crouched over me, holding his weight off of my body, his tongue plundering my mouth. My hands, slick with oil, scratched at the skin on his back and my hips lifted involuntarily, trying to impale myself on his erection. Teasingly, he slipped the head of his cock inside me before withdrawing and repeating over and over again. I tried to grip him around the waist with my legs, but the oil on my skin frustrated me until I burst out, "Edward, will you just fuck me, please?"

I growled as he withdrew again before slamming his cock deep inside me. For a second I couldn't breath as pleasure rocketed throughout my body and heat flushed my skin from the inside out. I let out a sharp scream and gasped. Edward's eyes glanced at mine as he stilled for a few seconds, always gauging if I was okay.

"Oh God, Edward. Move, please." Even to my ears, my voice was breathy. Once he was sure I wasn't hurting, he increased his pace, his thrusts pushing me up the bed until I lifted my arms to press against the headboard, anchoring my body in place. Within seconds, my orgasm swept over me, heat and goosebumps chasing each other over my skin.

Edward groaned as my inner muscles clamped down on him and he stilled for a minute, waiting for me to release him. As soon as he could move again, he picked up his pace, pushing me into a second orgasm before stiffening and succumbing to the same pleasure.

Carefully, he lowered his body to mine, his lips connecting with the skin on my shoulder and neck where he had buried his head, his hot breath wafting over me. With a sigh of contentment, he eventually shifted to one side and onto his stomach, flinging one heavy arm over me.

I didn't surface until dawn was breaking and my bladder insisted I visit the bathroom. Edward had moved, and was pinning me down with his leg thrown over mine. I had to wriggle out from under him, falling back to sleep for another few hours when I returned.

The following morning saw us back on our way again after a fantastic breakfast and, luckily for us, the weather held and the following few days on the bike got better and better. No longer stiff at the end of each day, we found a small B&B for each night before continuing on our way.

A few days later, we found ourselves on the outskirts of Jacksonville and the small boutique hotel I'd found online before leaving home. It was only a few minutes walk from the beach and we spent the next three days talking about the future, sunbathing and playing in water still warm from the heat of the summer sun, then racing back to the hotel to make love when our touches strayed. Early evenings eating ice cream at wonderful open air cafés led to midnight strolls on the boardwalk alongside the beach and making love at midnight to the sound of the ocean, hidden away out of sight behind huge wave-softened rocks.

I was sad to leave it all behind, but I was also looking forward to seeing Charlie and Lily. This was the longest we had been away from them since Charlie had been taken, and despite FaceTiming and Skype calls, we were both eager to spending the next week at Disney World.

Seeing them pile out of the SUV outside the hotel was the icing on the cake, so to speak. Rose and Emmett added just the right amount of adult company, while we all spent the days exploring the attractions. We visited the local shops, finding gifts for everyone back home as well as filling enough bags with Disney stuffed toys that I thought we'd need an extra room to house them all.

Both children loved the water park with its sandy bottomed pool, the slides and the lazy river where we settled into huge rubber rings and floated our way around the park. Most days we arrived home damp and tired, the children ready for a bath and early dinner together as a family. A few nights we used the babysitting services and the four of us went out to an adult dinner and dancing. Seth and Garrett were always close by, although Edward assured me that we were totally safe. With Aro and Marcus and their offspring gone, it would be a long time before anyone was strong enough to even consider mounting any sort of offense.

Still, I was glad they were there, preventing any wannabes from trying anything that would endanger our lives.

At the end of the week, we all boarded a flight home, arranging for the bike to be shipped. We arrived home, exhausted, suntanned and happy to find that Esme had been busy airing the house out, changing sheets and filling the fridge so we had nothing to do but relax until Charlie started back to school just a couple of days late.

I was shocked when I found out I was pregnant, though not unhappy about it since we'd already decided that we wanted more children. Within a few weeks, I was overwhelmed with tiredness and morning sickness and soon discovered that we were having twins. Later, we were told we had two more boys to complete our family.

When things got a little too much for me to cope with, Rachel Black, Jacob's sister, joined us as our housekeeper and occasional nanny, and we couldn't have been happier.

~ oOo ~

The door to my room opened and brought me out of my waking dream.

"Hi, sweetheart. How are you feeling today?" Esme had been a godsend over the last six weeks, taking up the slack with the children, keeping me company when I was ready to scream with boredom, and helping to keep me calm.

"Not too bad, Esme. I just need to get out of this bed and this hospital."

"I know, but it won't be long now, will it? Have they confirmed the date of the c-section yet?" Esme took the seat beside the bed, holding my hand.

"It's scheduled for May eighteenth, unless I go into labor before then. I've been given steroids to make sure their lungs are as developed as possible, just in case. I'd love to give birth naturally, but I don't think that's going to happen." Tears threatened as my mind flicked over all that might go wrong.

"Hey, now!" Esme moved to settle on the bed beside me, folding me in her arms. "Everything's going to be alright. You have the best doctors for both you and the twins, and they're a good weight already, aren't they?" She leaned back and offered me a tissue.

"They are," I answered between swallowing back the tears and blowing my nose. "Liam is just over five pounds and Masen, the little monster, is just under six. Irina says it's unusual for twins to be as heavy as that, but not impossible. It does mean that they'll be able to come home fairly quickly, as long as there are no other problems to stop them."

At that moment, the door opened again. Edward held it for Charlie and Lily to race into the room. In the corridor outside, I could see Seth lounging in one of the seats, laughing at their antics. I knew that Garrett would be close by too, despite that fact that it had been nine months since we'd heard anything from Volterra. I had no illusions that there would never be another attack on the Cullen family, but for now I was comforted that we would always be protected.

A look of concern crossed Edward's face and he mouthed 'are you okay?' over their heads. I gave him a watery smile and nodded before greeting the kids. Esme produced a basket with fresh fruit and muffins and Edward placed my tea on the rolling tray.

Esme stayed another thirty minutes, engaging Charlie and Lily in conversation about the twins, while Edward sat on the other side of the bed with his arms around me. I had to admit to myself that I was just as horny as Edward; the enforced bed rest had not been easy for me either. Any time he was close to me, I wanted to jump his bones.

Eventually, Esme ushered them out of the room, leaving Edward and me alone again. "Are you sure you're okay?" When I nodded, he asked, "Why the tears then, my love?"

I shrugged and burrowed further into his embrace. "More of the same. I've spent so long in this bed, and I just need to go home." When he took a breath to speak, I continued, "I know I need to be here to make sure they make it out safely, but I miss being at home." There was nothing that could be said or done, so Edward just pulled me closer and hugged me tightly. I ate half a muffin and a few strawberries and drank my tea, before drifting back to sleep.

Edward eventually left after a call from Esme, telling him that the children were waiting for him to come home to have dinner with them. "I'll be back with you later, okay?"

"No, Edward, it's fine. You've spent every night for the past week sleeping in that uncomfortable chair. Go home tonight and I'll see you in the morning." I could see him vacillating between wanting to stay with me and keep me company and the tiredness pulling him toward sleeping in our bed for just one night. "Come on, Edward. It's only one night, and I'll be absolutely fine."

He sighed and yawned widely, before kissing me and leaving me to try and get comfortable.

~ oOo ~

It was still dark when I woke, an uncomfortable tightness across my stomach. I put it down to Braxton Hicks contractions and used the bathroom before trying to get comfortable enough to fall asleep again. The contractions didn't increase in length or strength, but I was unable to get comfortable enough, and eventually gave up as dawn peeked above the horizon.

I'd also developed a headache, which is what eventually coerced me to press the call button. The door opened to admit Shelly, who had just come back on shift. "Good morning, Bella. What are you doing awake this early? Can I get you anything?"

"I don't know what I want, Shelly. I've had Braxton Hicks contractions for the last couple of hours and I just can't get comfortable, and now I have a headache, too."

"Okay, sweetheart, I'll just take your vitals and then I'll get something for your headache. Try and relax." She checked my heart rate and nodded encouragingly and then took my blood pressure. She didn't look nearly as happy about that, so I guessed it had gone up a little.

"Can I?" Shelly indicated my stomach and I nodded in acceptance, now becoming a little worried.

"What is it, Shelly? What's wrong?"

"Don't you worry, Bella. Irina will be in to see you soon and she'll talk you through everything. You can tell her how you're feeling and go from there." And with that I had to be content. She left and returned in a couple of minutes with some pills, which I took. They relaxed me and got rid of my headache enough for me to drift back to sleep again.

When I woke for the second time, it was to the sound of Irina's voice as she stepped into my room. "I hear you had a disturbed night, Bella. How are you feeling now?"

"I think these are more than Braxton Hicks, Irina. They haven't gotten a whole lot more frequent, but they are kind of painful. My back aches and so does my head, again."

Irina re-did the tests that Shelly had carried out earlier. "I'm just going to do an internal because I think these are real contractions, and then we'll get you set up and monitor them for a couple of hours and see how things progress."

"Does that mean what I think it means? Will I have these babies naturally?"

"Well, if you are in active labor, I would suggest an epidural to help bring your blood pressure down and then we can just see what happens. How does that sound?"

I nodded and closed my eyes as what I now knew to be a contraction caused my stomach to tighten. I still felt no real pain, but I was glad for the epidural, which would make things so much easier. "Can you call Edward, please, Irina? I don't really need him to come in early just to hold my hand, but if I don't tell him, he'll be annoyed. He's more likely to believe you when you say I'm fine, than he is to even listen to me."

"I'll get the anesthesiologist now and then call him for you. How long do you want me to hold him off? Not that I can promise anything, but I can tell him you're sleeping."

"Thanks, Irina, however long that will give me is great." Left on my own for a few minutes, my bladder made itself felt under the punishment of one of the twins' feet. The other was pushing against my diaphragm, making me a little short of breath. I struggled upright, feeling like a beached whale, and swung my legs over the side of the bed. A rush of dizziness hit me and I closed my eyes for a second waiting for the room to stop spinning. A couple of minutes later, I opened my eyes, thankful that it had passed reasonably quickly and slid off the bed to stand upright.

It seemed that my body was rebelling against all movement as nausea rolled through me right on the heels of the reappearance of the headache that had been threatening. Taking a few deep breaths, I made my way to the bathroom to relieve my bladder and freshen up a little and then turned to head back to bed feeling worse by the second. Alternately hot and then cold, I could feel the sweat beading on my forehead and the room spun, blackness creeping around the edge of my vision.

I could feel myself falling, and twisted to one side to protect the twins. The last thing I saw was Irina's feet as she entered the room and Seth's panicked face from his seat opposite my door.

~ oOo ~

An annoyingly perpetual beeping penetrated my consciousness. I groaned, not wanting to wake yet; I was having the best sleep since I'd found out that I was pregnant. A movement from beside me had me opening my eyes to see Edward, his head laid on the bed beside me and my hand gripped softly in his. I looked down at my body, a faint feeling of panic fluttering behind my breastbone, as I took in my flatter stomach and the lack of familiar movements from inside me. I shifted in the bed, suddenly aware of the soreness across my abdomen.I instinctively knew that I'd had a cesarean and my babies were somewhere in this hospital.

"Edward," I said softly as he stirred. "What happened? Where are my babies?" I tried to keep my voice even, but he must have heard the waver in my tone as I brushed my fingers through his hair. It was the way I'd woken him up a thousand times before.

His eyes fluttered open. "Bella, are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Where are Liam and Masen? Are they alright? What happened? The last thing I remember was seeing the door open and then nothing."

At that moment, the door opened, admitting Irina. "Ah, awake at last I see. How are you feeling?"

"Sore, but okay. The babies? What happened?" I asked her the same question I'd flung at Edward a minute earlier.

"They're absolutely fine, Bella, stop worrying. Both are a good size and are in the NICU under observation, and we're giving them a little extra oxygen to make sure they're lungs are working perfectly." Irina answered the most important question first, while she checked my blood pressure and inspected my incision site. "That all looks good. To answer your last question, your blood pressure spiked when you went to the bathroom and you collapsed. With the pre-eclampsia, which we've been able to head off with the bed rest, the safest thing was to deliver the babies straight away."

I lay back with a sigh of relief. "The last thing I saw was Seth."

"That was a terrifying call to get, Bella. I broke every traffic law on my way here. Don't you ever scare me like that again; I was afraid I was going to lose you." Edward lifted my hand to his mouth and kissed it before standing and leaning over me to give me a tight hug.

I could feel the slight tremble in his body which slowly quieted the longer he held me.

"When can I see them?" I asked Irina as he drew back.

"As soon as those fluids are finished." She pointed at the bag above my head slowly dripping through and into my body. I shuddered slightly at the thought of the needle in the back of my hand and pushed it away, concentrating on what Irina was saying. "Edward can take you to the NICU in a wheelchair. However, after that we want you on your feet; it's the best way to help you recover so you can go home in a couple of days. How does that sound?"

"Thanks, Irina, that's perfect."

"If you need more pain relief, press the button. I'll be back to see you a little later."

I barely noticed her leave the room before my attention was back on Edward, who had taken his seat again and gripped my hand. He squeezed it and nodded, having agreed with Irina. "Have you seen them, Edward?" I asked, anxious to see that they were okay for myself.

He nodded. "Yes, I made a quick trip while you were still out. They're gorgeous; Liam was born first and is like Charlie. Masen is the smaller of the two and was born five minutes later; he takes after Lily. I can't wait to hold them."

"And they're really okay?"

"Yes, they're perfect. Thank you, Bella. I love you."

I winced as I moved into a more comfortable position in the bed, the discomfort in my incision impinging on me. I pressed the button and felt myself relax within minutes and I drifted back to sleep again.

When I woke again, the drip was gone and Edward was leaning back in his seat. Esme was seated next to him and they were talking quietly. "Hey," I whispered, my throat scratchy with thirst. "Can I get a drink?" Edward practically leaped to his feet and grabbed the cup on the nightstand, holding the straw to my lips. "Thanks. Hi, Esme."

"Hi, Bella. More to the point, how are you feeling?"

"Better now. Have you seen the twins? How are Charlie and Lily?"

"Charlie and Lily know the babies are here and are waiting very impatiently at home with Rose. I thought I'd wait until you and Edward have been to the NICU before I visit with them."

A couple of hours later, I was seated in a wheelchair and fidgeting, trying to hold in my excitement at finally being able to see and hold Liam and Masen. I think Edward was just as excited because the wheelchair was moving faster the closer we got to the NICU. One of the nurses on duty, Lucy, as her name tag told us, smiled widely at Edward, obviously having seen him before, and opened the door to let us in.

"Hello, Edward, and you must be Bella. The twins are ready for you." She showed us where to wash up and then led us both to a double open crib at one end of the room, where the boys were lying facing each other. Their names were on blue-edged cards at the top of the crib, telling us which was which, though they were actually quite different. Each of them had a small cannula taped to their face giving them that extra help with breathing. Before I could ask anything, she continued. "They didn't need anything except a little help breathing and that was mostly a precaution. They've been so close for so long that when they were separated they were pretty loud until we put them in this crib together." She grinned as she leaned over and spoke to them.

"Your Mommy and Daddy are here to visit with you, sweeties," she cooed at them. "Are you going to breastfeed, Bella? They're just about due for a feed, so we can do that now if you're up to it."

I'd already decided that I wanted to try, even though it might take a little maneuvering with two of them, but I was determined to have a go. I nodded eagerly. Edward took the seat beside me, waiting as impatiently as I was to finally get to touch and cuddle them.

Lucy lifted Liam and placed him carefully in my arms. The weight of him in my arms was a familiar feeling, and I felt a rush of love for this small human Edward and I had created. Lucy had now placed Masen in Edward's arms, and a quick glance at him told me that his face had to have been a mirror of mine. He kissed Masen on the forehead as I did the same to Liam and my eyes dropped to the small body I held.

"Hello, my sweet, Liam. I'm so happy to meet you; I love you." His eyes blinked open slowly at the sound of my voice and I gasped at the deep blue eyes, which already had a faint rim of green. My hand brushed over his head, the faint reddish color a hint of its likeness to Edward's; even the shape of his eyes belonged to his father.

His mouth opened in a wide yawn, and he screwed his face up and let out a yell. Lucy laughed. "Sounds like he's realized it's dinner time." She placed a pillow under his body so I could rest his weight evenly. I unbuttoned my gown and she helped me to get him situated at at my breast. Latching on immediately, he sucked hard; an echoing cramp in my belly reminding me how uncomfortable these first couple of weeks could be.

While I fed Liam his first meal, I gazed at his face, learning his features, my love for him expanding with every second. Meanwhile, Edward was murmuring to Masen, who looked as if he was about to follow his brother with a yell. "Masen's a lot quieter than Liam generally." Lucy was leaning back against the wall beside us, watching for any help I might need. "I think he's going to be the follower."

Liam relaxed in my arms, satisfied for the moment. I looked over at Edward to find him watching me. "Masen next?" Lucy came over and took Liam from me and Edward stood to position Masen on the pillow. When he sat again, Lucy handed a sleepy Liam to him, while my eyes were drawn to the younger of the twins. As Edward had said, Masen was so like Lily, with a slightly more masculine look to his feature. His eyes, too, were dark blue, with no color around the edges like his brother. I would have liked him to have blue eyes like Carlisle, but looking at the tuft of dark hair on his head, it seemed more likely that he would have my coloring.

Just as Liam had done, he blinked at me, opening his eyes wide, and started turning his head toward me. I reversed him and the pillow and offered him my other breast, not needing Lucy's help this time. He latched on just as quickly as Liam had. Both breast men, just like their older brother and father. The thought made me smile and I looked away from my youngest son to where Edward sat, gazing quietly at his sleeping son, his face suffused with so much love it almost took my breath away.

It seemed no time at all before both babies were back to sleeping and Edward and I had to return to my room. I consoled myself with the thought that it wouldn't be long before we'd all be at home. For a while, I was a little melancholy not being able to have my precious babies right next to me. That soon dissipated with a long awaited visit from Charlie and Lily, who burst into the room with balloons and teddy bears for their brothers.

"Where are they?" I thanked my lucky stars at that moment that neither of the twins was in the room. They surely would have been woken with the yell that came from Charlie. I knew he'd been spending too much time with Uncle Emmett and we'd have to have a talk about inside voices and the need for babies to sleep.

Nevertheless, they were a welcome sight, and peppered me with numerous questions about Liam and Masen. "Why don't I take you down to the nursery to see them?" Edward's voice broke through the cacophony of half whispered, half shouted voices, his suggestion taken up eagerly by both Charlie and Lily.

Esme had waited patiently in the room while Edward and I had gone to see the twins and now happily left with them to take a first look at her new grandsons. Rose, who had brought the children with her, took Edward's seat beside me. "How are you feeling, Bella?"

It seemed everyone wanted an answer to that question and I assured her that I was feeling absolutely fine. Not quite true as I needed a little more pain medicine but for now it was perfectly bearable.

She'd left her three month old daughter, Sophie, with Emmett. "I hope he's coping, Bella. It's the first time I've left her." Rose chewed at her lip anxiously. "My head says he'll be fine, but my heart is crashing around in my chest at the thought of even leaving her, no matter who she's with."

"Oh, Rose, it'll be fine. Emmett has to learn to cope by himself and he's a very capable man; try not to worry." I patted her hand as she chattered on about Sophie and her latest achievements, while I described every second of the time I'd spent with the twins this morning.

An hour later I was beginning to worry a little about where Edward and Esme had taken the children when loud voices could be heard outside the door. It swung open, admitting Esme, holding Charlie and Lily by the hand, and then Edward, followed by Irina who was pushing the double bassinet in front of her and into the room.

"They're okay, Irina?" I virtually whispered as I noticed the absence of cannulas.

"They are, Bella; the oxygen was a twenty-four hour safeguard. They can stay with you for as long as you want them to now and, provided there are no complications with you, they can accompany you home in a couple of days."

~ oOo ~

The time flew past as Edward and I got to know our two newest family members, and when we took them home two days later,, as Irina had said, our family was complete.

For all the dangerous secrets he'd kept from me and never intended for me to know, it was clear that no matter what happened from here on in, Edward and I were stronger because of what we had been through together.

** Dangerous Secrets **

** The End **

AN: It's been difficult to let these two go and I know there are so many things that I've not delved into, but it's time to let them get on with their lives.

See you in my next story

Thanks to each and every one of you

Sue

xxx