Caught in the Flames

Chapter One Hundred Forty-Seven

As always, none of this is mine. I'm just the perv who want to make our beloved Twilight characters swear, drink, and go at it like horny rabbits. This story will be a combination of love, suspense, some violence and steamy, sweaty sex.

Chapter 147

EPOV

The next morning, I woke up alone and confused. The sun was shining brightly in my room. An older woman was checking my vitals. "Oooh, Bella was right. You do have beautiful eyes," she said, smiling brightly. "I'm Pam and I'm your nurse today until seven tonight."

I went to open my mouth to respond. Pam patted the whiteboard next to me. "No talking. Not yet."

Where's Bella? I wrote.

"She's showering and speaking with Eleazar," Pam explained. "He was not happy with the fact that she spent the night."

Why?

"It's nothing," Pam said, smiling secretively. "She'll be back in a little bit. Now, how is your pain level?"

It's pretty bad. What happened to me? I looked up at her beseechingly.

"You were burnt all along your right side. Whoever attacked you in the fire took your gear and left you exposed. The burns, for the most part, are second degree. You will have some scarring, but you were lucky since it could have been a lot worse," Pam began. "In addition to the burns, you have several broken ribs and two stab wounds. The first stab wound entered just above your liver, but missed vital organs. The second wound was a bit more precarious. It nicked the pericardial sack of your heart. We had to perform surgery to correct that." She untied the hospital gown, showing me a large bandage on my left side, covering almost all of me.

I started to hyperventilate. Weakly, I went to touch my side but my hand fell away. "What does this mean?"

"Edward, you need to calm down," Pam said, covering my chest. She pulled down an oxygen mask, covering my nose and mouth. "Deep breaths." Her eyes were locked with me and she breathed slowly. As she was trying, unsuccessfully, to calm me, Eleazar came into my room with Bella and my dad. Bella ran to my side, her fingers threaded with mine. I felt somewhat calmer, but I was helpless, broken and weak. Pam was speaking, but it sounded muddled. Eleazar walked over to me and injected something into my IV. My eyes drooped and I slumped against the pillows.

The next time I woke up, Bella was next to me, reading a book. I shifted and she stopped. "You're awake," she said, taking my hand. "Are you okay?"

"No," I said, looking down at my body. "I'm ... Bella ... I'm broken."

"You're broken, but you're alive," she breathed, taking my face into her warm hands. "I've spoken to the doctors and they expect you to make a full recovery."

"A full recovery?" I asked, furrowing my brows. "They cracked my chest open, Bella. That knife was perilously close to my heart. I have burns on my arms, torso and neck. I'm ... I'm ... so lost!"

"Edward, no," she said, her chocolate eyes filling with tears. She wrapped her arms around me, pressing my cheek to her chest. I wrapped my arms around her body, tears spilling down my own cheeks. I had been so used being strong and infallible. I should be able to protect my fiancée, my family. Not now. Possibly not ever. "Edward, listen to me. Right now, you are hurting, scared and weak. I'm here for you and always will be. You've been my rock for our entire relationship. Now, it's my turn. I understand that you're questioning everything, but don't question my love for you. Don't question what our love created." She blushed and picked up my good hand, pressing it to her belly.

"What are you talking about?" I asked. My hand felt her stomach and it wasn't as soft as it had been in the past. It was definitely harder. "Bella?"

"I know that with everything going on, James, my running away, our wedding – if it's still on – the timing is not ideal," she murmured. "But, we need this good news. At least, I think it's good news. Miraculous news, really." She closed her eyes and rubbed my knuckles. When her eyes opened up, they were brimming with tears but they weren't of sadness, but of joy. "You're going to be a daddy."

I blinked a few times, shocked at what I had heard. Bella was pregnant? She said that it wasn't likely that she could get pregnant. "You're pregnant?" I asked, massaging her belly. She reached into her back pocket, showing me an ultrasound printout. I didn't know what I was looking it. Bella must have realized that, chuckling as she flipped it over.

"This is the head, the heart and the spine," she said, pointing out the distinctive features. "I just passed into my second trimester. When you woke up this morning, I was meeting with my OB/GYN. With everything going on, we've been concerned about the pregnancy. My doctor has been monitoring my condition as soon as I found out."

"How long have you known?" I asked, tracing the spine of my baby. I was going to be a daddy. Bella was the mother of my child.

"I was feeling off for a month or so. I thought it was just nerves, but Alice, when she came to smack some sense into me while I was in Forks, got me a pregnancy test. I didn't want to take it because I didn't want to get my hopes up. So, I humored her and peed on the stick. It was positive and Alice and I flew home the next day. I went to the doctor and she confirmed the pregnancy. That was the day before Alice's store caught on fire."

"You've known the entire time I've been in the medically induced coma? You've been coping with this for two weeks?" I asked, taking her hands. She nodded, giving me a watery smile. "What did the doctor say?"

"I need to take it easy. The pregnancy is precarious and anything could cause something to go wrong," she said, pressing my hand to her belly and covering it with hers. "But, for now, the pregnancy is healthy and so is our baby. I know that everything has gone to hell in a handbasket. We have to focus on what's good in our lives. You're alive and will make a complete recovery. We're going to have a baby. Hopefully, we'll get married."

"None of this hopefully shit," I said, looking up at her. "We are going to get married. I love you, Bella. Our love created our baby."

"Peanut," she said, smiling shyly. "I've been calling our baby peanut because the first ultrasound, she looked like a peanut." She rubbed her stomach affectionately. She looked up at me, tears in her eyes. "We're still getting married. Even after all we've been through?"

"We have a lot to talk about, but one thing has not changed. I love you and I want to get married to you. You are the mother of my child, my best friend, my love of my life, everything ..." I said, cupping her cheek. I traced her lips, moving my hand to the back of her neck and kissing her gently. She smiled against my mouth. "Now, we do have to figure out, do you want to get married before or after the baby's born?"

"Let's get you out of the hospital before we start planning our nuptials in earnest. You have a lot of healing to do. But, I will be with you every step of the way. I vow to you; I'm not going anywhere," she promised. "But, come October, I will be saying 'I do,' Daddy. And we'll be a family."

"A family," I smiled.

"Our family," she reaffirmed, kissing me softly.

A/N: He finally knows about Peanut. Now, what do you think Bella and Edward will have? A boy or a girl? Leave me your vote in a review. Also, a favorite name?

Up next will be a jump in time. We'll find out about Edward's future in the firehouse. Leave me some, please?