Chapter 11-I'll Stand By You

Playlist:I'll Stand By You- Carrie Underwood, Stay-Little Big Town, Realize- Colbie Caillat, Love Soon- John Mayer

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Chapter 11- I'll Stand By You

Oh, why you look so sad, Tears are in your eyes, Come on and come to me now

Don't be ashamed to cry, Let me see you through, Cause I've seen the dark side too

When the night falls on you, You don't know what to do, Nothing you confess can make me love you less

I'll stand by you, I'll stand by you, Won't let nobody hurt you, I'll stand by you

So if you're mad get mad, Don't hold it all inside, Come on and talk me now

Hey, What you got to hide, I get angry too, Well I'm a lot like you

When you're standing at the crossroads, And don't know which path to choose, Let me come along

Cause even if you're wrong, I'll stand by you, I'll stand by you

Won't let nobody hurt you, I'll stand by you, Take me in into your darkest hour

And I'll never desert you, I'll stand by you

And when…when the night falls on you baby, You're feeling all alone, You won't be on your own

I'll stand by you, I'll stand by you, I won't let nobody hurt you

I'll stand by you, Take me in into your darkest hour, And I'll never desert you

I'll stand by you, Oh…I'll stand by you, I'll stand by you

Carrie Underwood-I'll Stand by You

Bella's POV

I was dressed in what Alice had laid out on the bed for me and was sitting in a chair waiting for Rosalie to do my hair when the phone rang. Alice picked it up and I could hear her speaking but not her words. She spoke for a few minutes and then I heard her say goodbye.

She stepped back into the room and shared her conversation with us.

"Esme just finished her meeting and is heading home. She wants to change before she meets us to go shopping. She said if we want to stop there, she will have lunch for us and then we can all ride in her big Suburban, that way we have plenty of room for our bags. Is that okay with you two?" She asked as she was pulling her jeans up over her slim hips and buttoning them.

"Sure," Rosalie and I both said in unison.

So we finished dressing and climbed into Rosalie's BMW to drive to Esme's house. I felt my phone buzz and opened it. I had a text from Edward; it looked like it came in last night.

B-

I love you, and miss you already!

I'm spending the next few days at the hunting cabin,

I don't get reception up there so no messages

until I get back down the mountain, sorry!

I will call you as soon as I can.

Did I tell you I love you yet?

Just in case, I love you!

Yours Always!

E-

I was so in love with this man and I couldn't even tell him; I couldn't wait until he got back so I could. In the meantime, I texted him back so he would know I cared as much for him as he did for me.

E-

I miss you too!

Have fun at the cabin,

Yes I know you love me, and I love you too!

Call me when you can as often as you can,

this will help time go by quicker for me!

Take care of yourself and come home soon!

Love Always,

B

I wanted to tell him so much more but it couldn't be done on a text, I would wait until I was face to face with him. I wanted to tell him that he was so important to me. Make him understand that I wanted to help make him whole again, make all of his trouble go away, and to love him like no woman has ever loved a man before. I needed to tell him that I loved when he touched my cheek, when he opened the door for me, when he asked me what I wanted to do first instead of telling me what he wanted. How much I loved that he kissed Esme when he saw her and how his eyes softened when she hugged him. I loved the way his eyes glinted when Emmett called him Eddie but deep down I knew he loved it, how he could talk so animated to Jasper about so many things and I loved to watch their conversations when it was the two of them discussing something that engaged them both. How he always did exactly what Rosalie told him to do to take care of his car and that he trusted her completely. That he followed Carlisle's advice every time. I loved the way he touched my body and caressed my face. How tender his kiss is and how it turns to fire a second later. How his eyes look when he enters me, they become glazed and heavy lidded, like he has to fight to keep them open. I love the way he whispers my name as he comes, and the sweet words he says to me to excite my body. I love so many things about him, and I can't wait to tell him all of them.

I felt my phone vibrate again and I eagerly checked it hoping it was from Edward, it was.

B

I will call you every chance I get, I promise!

Take care of my heart I've left it with you!

I Love You!

E

I would never get tired of seeing or hearing him say that.

I heard Alice call for me to come on, I grabbed my purse and tucked my phone in my pocket so I could reach it if he called or texted. I left the house with the two of them and we headed to Esme's house to eat and then shop.

We made the drive in almost silence. I kept feeling my pocket for my phone, making sure that by some miracle that the pocket of my jeans didn't suddenly develop a hole large enough for my cell phone to fall out, it didn't.

We ate with Esme, everyone seemed to be on edge, and no one knew exactly what to say with the whole Edward thing going on. No one wanted to say the wrong thing and upset anyone so we all kept quiet for as long as we could stand it. Finally Rosalie broke the silence in a way only Rosalie could do.

"So, Bella, what the fuck are you going to do until Edward comes home?" We all burst into side splitting laughter and no one could help it.

"I don't know, Rosalie. I don't even know how long he'll be gone. I'm hoping to hear from him or Carlisle soon. I know they're going to spend the weekend at the cabin, but after that I don't know," I replied honestly. "I have to start work on Monday so I will at least have something to occupy my time until he comes home, thank goodness."

"Bella, I'm sorry that we didn't know about this and could have somehow keep the two of you from having that terrible fight, I feel responsible. I wish I could do something." Alice's eyes welled up with tears and I grabbed her hand to comfort her.

"Alice, don't be silly. He didn't tell anyone and how are we to know if he doesn't tell anyone? I do think I would have handled the phone call a little differently if I had known though. This is something he needs to get counseling for now and get the guilt off of his mind or we'll never be able to start a real relationship. Maybe it's a good thing that this happened now, after all." I pleaded with her hoping she would see the good in the situation.

Rosalie stood abruptly from her chair and began to pace back and forth; her anger spilling out of her causing her words to have a sharp tone to them. "Well, if that bitch would just have left him alone he may have been able to get over this in his own way without forcing the issue. I still think we should hunt her down and shave her head. She always did love that ugly blond hair of hers." She smirked and rubbed her hands together like an evil villain in a movie.

"Rosalie, like I said, it's for the best to get this out now, besides he still swears she didn't call him, so who knows. I don't think he's protecting her; I'm just not sure what happened to the call," I replied to her hoping I had calmed some of her anger.

Esme suddenly looked pale and spoke with a voice that was barely above a whisper. "Bella, what phone call?"

"Edward had a phone call from Tanya on his cell. I went into his room to leave him a note, and I placed the note under his phone and turned to leave. When I was almost out of his room the phone rang. I thought it was Jasper or Emmett calling to ask him to hang out, so I went to grab it and tell them to call him back in a few when he got back. To my surprise, it was Tanya's name on the caller id. I just laid the phone down and left. Later when I asked him about it, he denied seeing any missed calls, and then when I told him it was Tanya, he denied it again. So I checked his phone and her name was erased from his contacts and no missed calls from her were showing." I shrugged my shoulders and held up my hands. "I don't know what happened but she was on there. I don't think Edward is lying, but now after hearing all that happened between them, I don't want her speaking to him at all. I'm sure he wouldn't want to talk to her either. I just hate that I accused him of lying during all of this not knowing what was really going on. I said some things that were not nice, Esme." I turned to speak directly to her but I noticed that she was still very pale and had a far off look in her eyes now. I laid my hand on her arm and shook it lightly.

"Bella, I don't know what to say, I had no idea or I would have fixed this right away, please don't be angry. I'm so sorry, Edward's not lying. Tanya did call him. I was at the house, I came to give John the correct blueprints and talk with him. I thought you might still be in bed so I snuck up stairs and heard his phone beeping from the missed call. I walked over and saw her name on the display. I was so pissed off at her and how she treated him, so I picked up his phone and deleted her call. Then I erased her name from the contacts. I didn't even know about her following him to college, but I did know she hurts him every time she's around, so I decided to get rid of her the only way I could. I thought it would be better if he didn't know she called at all. Bella, you have to believe me, I had no idea it would cause all of this. Please, can you ever forgive me? I promise I did it, not Edward." She sat with a look of shock on her face. She held my hands tightly in hers, pleading me to forgive her.

When I pulled my hands out of hers, she blanched, then softened when I grabbed her to me and squeezed her tightly. "I promise, Esme, it's no big deal. Edward needed to get this taken care of and it would not have come up if this hadn't happened. I wasn't happy about it but at least I feel like it was for a reason, you know? Don't feel bad, we moved on past the whole phone call and lying quickly when Edward shared what really happened. But it will be nice to tell him that I was the one that was wrong. I promise, Esme, no big deal. Please don't worry about it; I know Edward is not concerned at all about it." I tried to persuade her to believe me. Maybe I could text Edward and show her his answer so she would feel better about it.

"I'll tell Edward the next time he texts me and you'll see he is fine, trust me this is okay now." I said, trying to soothe her.

Everyone felt a little strung out from the emotions that were pulling at each of us. Guilt, anger, and sorrow; but for me, I had hope and love. We finished lunch in silence, cleaned up our mess, and then left for our shopping trip. We decided to drive to Seattle and spend the night at a hotel. No one would miss us since all of our men were together at the cabin. So we headed for the highway to do some real shopping in Seattle.

We were still quiet on the drive. Esme had the radio on softly playing music in the background. I was deep in thought but I heard the unmistakable notes of my new favorite song. I was an instant sobbing mess.

"Turn this up, please, turn it up loud, as loud as you can stand it," I pleaded.

So lately, been wondering who will be there to take my place,

When I'm gone, you'll need love to light the shadows on your face,

If a greater wave shall fall and fall upon us all ,

Then between the sand and stone could you make it on your own,

If I could, then I would, I'll go wherever you will go,

Way up high, or down low, I'll go wherever you will go,

And maybe, I'll find out a way to make it back someday,

To watch you, to guide you through the darkest of your days,

If a greater wave shall fall and fall upon us all,

Well, then I hope there's someone out there who can bring me back to you,

If I could, then I would, I'll go wherever you will go,

Way up high, or down low, I'll go wherever you will go,

Runaway with my heart, runaway with my home, runaway with my love,

I know now, just quite how my life and love might still go on,

In your heart, in your mind, I'll stay with you for all of time,

If I could, then I would, I'll go wherever you will go,

Way up high, or down low, I'll go wherever you will go,

If I could turn back time, I'll go wherever you will go,

If I could make you mine, I'll go wherever you will go,

I'll go wherever you will go.

"I love him so much and it kills me to think of him, alone and trying to solve this problem. I should be with him to help him. I want him home so bad and he has just left. How can I make it until he comes home? I'm not going to be able to do this without him; I need him," I sobbed into Alice's shoulder.

"Then call him, Bella, tell him you love him so he'll know. He'll understand that you need him, tell him how much, it will help him. I promise, just call him," Alice encouraged, and Esme and Rosalie were both turned to face me and nodding their approval at Alice's thought.

I grabbed my cell phone and prayed that they weren't too far in the mountain to get my call yet.

"Hello, Edward, can you hear me?" I almost shouted, not sure why I thought shouting would help, but I did it.

"Bella, I can hear you. Are you alright?" His voice sounded so tender, I loved the way my name sounded coming off of his tongue. I almost forgot the reason I called just listening to him speak.

"Edward, I'm okay, I just missed you and broke down crying. I'm sorry I tried to be strong, but your song came on the radio and I couldn't listen to it without crying. I love you, baby. I miss you so much. I'm proud of you for going, but please come home soon to me, please." I was crying again.

"Bella, love, please don't cry. I'm fine, I promise. I'll be home soon and we'll be back together again, I promise. I'll send you gifts and call you as often as I can. I'm really sorry for leaving you. Please tell me you understand and aren't mad at me," he begged.

"I could never be mad at you for trying to do the right thing. I just missed you and it all came crashing down when the song came on, I promise I'm okay. I'm going to Seattle to shop for some work clothes with Alice, Rosalie and Esme." It suddenly occurred to me to help ease Esme's mind right now. "Oh Edward, I solved the mystery of the phone call. Esme was at the house that day and saw her name. She erased it and her info. I'm sorry that I didn't believe you. Esme feels terrible but I told her not to worry it was for the best that it happened and we're not mad. Please tell her you're not mad so she'll quit worrying." I handed the phone to Esme.

"Oh, Edward, I'm so sorry I didn't mean to start all of this, I promise. I'll never again do something like that." I could hear Edward talking in the background but I couldn't hear what he said. Esme's face eased and her smile returned to her face so he must be assuring her that it's fine.

"Okay, here's Bella. I love you, son, please take care. And don't let Emmett try anything he shouldn't." Rosalie yelled her agreement in the background.

I took the phone from her. "Edward, I'm sorry for calling; I should let you enjoy your weekend. I just needed to tell you that I love you and I'll be here for you when you come home. Please make it soon. I don't want to wash my sheets because they smell like you and I don't want to lose that smell. I also don't want to sleep on dirty sheets." I smiled as I said the last part. I realized that I had said that with Esme in the car and blushed several shades of red.

"Silly Bella, just go and sleep in my bed when you need to. Besides I think I left my cologne there at the house so you can spray anything that you want to smell like me. But yes, I'll hurry." He paused for a moment and his next words almost knocked me off of my seat. "I love you, Bella. I'll call you when we get off of the mountain. Please let me hear you say it one more time baby, I can't hear it enough," his voice husky with emotion.

"I love you." I knew exactly what he wanted to hear from me, and I was glad it brought him as much pleasure to hear it as I got from hearing it from him.

"I'll talk to you soon, Bella. Bye baby."

"Bye, Edward."

And with that, the line was dead. All three pairs of eyes were on me and I smiled and blushed with embarrassment at our declarations of love to each other. I realized that all three were in just as deep as we were, so the embarrassment went away. It was replaced with joy at the fact that I got to tell Edward that I loved him. I was on cloud nine.

I shopped like a mad woman; I bought so many clothes that I was sure my closet would be fuller than Alice's. She was so excited at my willingness to buy what she threw at me. I left with about twenty bags of clothes and that doesn't count all of the new lingerie that I bought in preparation for Edward's return. Rosalie assured me that he'd like it all and I looked forward to showing him what I had.

We dropped off our clothes at the hotel and stopped downstairs in the restaurant for a quick dinner. By the time dinner was over, all we wanted to do was go back up to the room to rest.

That night was the first night I dreamt of Edward Masen-Cullen.