Chapter
27~ Reunited
The wedding was just weeks away, and Alice assured
Bella that everything was under control.
All of the dresses had been sized and altered accordingly, and the guys’
tuxes were being shipped from Paris.
They would be arriving in town tomorrow.
The guest list was set and all RSVPs had been received.
Bella did not want to be a bridzilla, but she REALLY
did not want the Denali bitches at her wedding, especially Kate. She understood, in part, why Tanya and Irina
behaved the way they did towards her.
Her memories of her human life had slowly begun to fade from her, but
the emotional memories seemed to be imprinted on her soul. She could clearly recall the hurt and
self-hatred they brought out of her, but not the exact words. She figured it was better that way—making it
easier to put it behind her.
However, Kate was a completely different
situation. The picture of her kissing Carlisle
was fuzzy, but it was there. She felt
her rage boil up every time the idea of Kate being here reared up in her
mind. Bella did not see herself as being
jealous. And as secure as she was in Carlisle’s
love for her, she was still a woman; and this woman did not want her man
anywhere near the harpy.
Carlisle could tell his love was on edge and thought
it had to do with all the wedding plans, not to mention Alice the wedding
planner on speed. He ran his hand
gingerly down her exposed arm, the sensation drawing Bella’s attention away
from her view out the window. She turned
and smiled softly at the Adonis to her right.
“Hunt with me,” he said as he brushed his lips
across her shoulder.
She hummed in contentment and nodded. His presence always brought her back to
herself. All the rage and hate leached
from her system. After grabbing a snug
fitting jacket to cover her bare arms, they were off. There was no chance of crossing paths with
any humans where they would be going, but Bella had learned early on that it
was always good practice to keep up the façade.
They ran side by side across the yard as the high
sunlight caused their skin to sparkle until it was lost to them in the
forest. Darting through the trees, Bella
never needed to look to find where Carlisle was. She could sense him; as if his body called
out to hers like a homing beacon. She
smiled to herself at this knowledge.
They came upon a giant bull moose and took him down
simultaneously. After that first joint
meal, they nearly always shared their kill.
That was unless the rest of the family happened to be out with them. Since dessert consisted of each other, that
could be very uncomfortable with others around.
Like clockwork, as soon as Bella drained the last of the viscous fluid
from the animal, Carlisle was on top of her.
He stripped her of her clothes as his lips ravaged her. She moaned into his open mouth as she tasted
the fresh blood on his demanding tongue.
Clothing was scattered about the forest floor as
Carlisle lifted Bella pressing her into the side of an ancient spruce. The tree groaned with the force but held its
place.
“My Bella.” Carlisle whispered across his mark on
her neck.
Bella was aching with need; whimpering at the sound
of her name on his lips.
“Carlisle,” she pleaded.
She didn’t need to tell him what she wanted; it was
exactly what he wanted. He locked his
gaze with hers and lowered her hips as he impaled her with his swollen
manhood. Their moans erupted in the
quiet forest, scaring away any creature that dared to remain. Her body welcomed him in to its sanctuary as
he thrust up into her over and over.
Bella rolled her hips to increase the sensations eliciting a low growl
from Carlisle. She smiled slyly knowing
that it was her that made him sound like that.
She reached up and latched her fingers into his hair, tugging. As if waving a green flag at the Indy 500,
Carlisle hit the accelerator and rammed his hips into Bella’s at a speed that
would make even a vampire dizzy.
Bella tossed her head back, making the tree shutter
as her climax ripped through her. A
scream of unbridled passion poured from her as her body contracted around
Carlisle’s, pulling him over the edge with her.
He lowered them to the forest floor, still
connected. Bella’s legs wrapped around
his waist as his fingers trailed up and down her flawless back. Her smile said it all. She was happy and her happiness was reflected
in Carlisle’s golden eyes. They kissed
softly—sweetly, so much in contrast to their recent activities, but at the same
time, so much the same. Both actions
born from love and a need to connect to each other.
Their hands touched and explored their mate’s
skin. There was not one inch on either
body that had not been touched before, but this always seemed to calm them both
in a way nothing else could. Bella loved
the way her fingers dipped along with the muscles of his arms. His collar bone was her favorite place to
drag her fingers across, so she saved it for last. There was something alluring about this spot
on his body and Bella could not help but run her tongue across the delicious
flesh her hand had just brushed over.
Carlisle closed his eyes. Bella’s mouth on him was the best feeling in
the entire world. He swirled his hips
causing his ever present hard-on to rub her delicate inner walls in a
thoroughly delectable way. Bella moaned
against his flesh as she licked and sucked from his collar bone to his
neck. She pushed her heals into his
taunt ass to pull them closer. Carlisle
was the one to moan this time. Bella
placed her hands on his shoulders and began to grind down on him. His hands ghosted down to her shapely bum
while he made small thrusts with his hips.
The movements were small but intense. Neither of them had leverage for deep strokes
but somehow they weren’t needed. Their
lips came together tenderly. They were
as close as two beings could be, and they thrived on their connection that was
more than physical; they connected on a whole different plane.
“I love you, Carlisle.”
“As I love you, My Bella.”
“Forever.”
“Forever.”
They reached their climax together in silence. Bella’s lips pressed to Carlisle’s before she
stood to recover her clothes. She caught
him staring at her bare breasts as she slipped her panties back on.
“Take a picture.
It’ll last longer.” She teased.
“Actually, it won’t.
Photogrphic paper has nothing on a photographic memory,” he snarked back
as he taped the side of his head.
Bella scoffed and rolled her eyes at him.
They continued their banter as they buried the
remains of the moose.
“Can we run for a while longer?” she asked. “I don’t
feel like sharing you just yet. I know
the guest are set to start arriving soon and between Alice and all things
wedding related, I feel like I need time to just be us, you know?”
Carlisle gathered Bella into his arms and held her
close, “I know exactly what you mean.”
He kissed her chastely. “Let’s head north for a bit. See what there is to see.”
Bella smiled at his suggestion. It had been over a month since they had gone
‘exploring’ as she liked to call it. A
human might not notice all the subtle variances in different locations that
were nothing but untamed wilderness, but Bella loved to find the originality of
new places.
They set off with their hands linked together. Bella giggled like a young girl at the
silliness of it, but she wasn’t letting go.
They ran for a couple more hours but came up short
as they crossed a very strong wolf scent.
It wasn’t like the wolves she had happened upon in their numerous hunts;
this smell was different. It made her
nose wrinkle as it assaulted her. There
was a small campsite set up with a fairly large tent cabin.
Before they realized what was happening, they were
face to face with Jacob in wolf form at the edge of the small outcropping. Growling and snarling in defense, he was
fierce and a force to be reckoned with.
Bella looked and saw a beautiful short haired brunette standing by his
flank. She watched cautiously, but when
her dark brown eyes met Bella’s she smiled.
It was unusual to have a human be at ease in their
presence, but this woman seemed to feel no fear of them, much like Bella when
she was human. Jacob, however, was not
taking any chances. This was his mate,
his other half, and he would not risk her safety with two vampires in front of
him. Bella saw his hackles raise as his
muscles tightened in preparation to leap.
“Jacob, it’s okay.
It’s me, Bella. We aren’t going
to hurt you.” She tried to sooth him with a hand out in front to show she meant
no harm.
He couldn’t listen as his protective instinct was in
full drive of his actions and he lunged at them. Carlisle immediately put himself between
Jacob and Bella. His instinct to protect
what was his was just as strong. Carlisle
did not have a violent nature, but his overpowering need to keep Bella from
harm overrode all other inclinations.
Jacob released a roar of a growl as he charged
forward. Carlisle crouched into a defensive
stance waiting for his attacker. The
alpha males were fully prepared to battle, though neither of them counted on
Bella’s shield to render them both useless.
Once Bella realized that Jacob would not back down she instinctually
threw up her shield around both her and Carlisle causing Jacob to yelp in pain
as he collided head on with the scorching heat a foot in front of the object of
his aggression.
He whimpered, but shook it off and charged again
only to be thrown back further this time.
He looked completely perplexed and shook his great furry head as he
growled in frustration. He could not
fight them as much as the wolf in him wanted to, so he urged the woman up onto
his back as he ran for the shelter of the trees.
“Jake!” Bella called to him, making as if she would
give chase.
Carlisle held her arm to stop her. “Let him go Bella. He has obviously not made peace with you
being a vampire. He most likely believed
you to be dead when he found your bloody clothes in the meadow.”
Bella nodded in acquiescence, but it burdened her
heart to think that Jacob hated her so much that he would rather kill her than
attempt to be civil. Carlisle saw the
hurt on her beautiful face and pulled her into his comforting embrace. He turned them in the direction that they had
come when they heard a rustle in the far off tree line.
They turned back to see Jacob emerge in jeans and a
hoodie similar to what the woman wore.
He walked towards them with a strong, confident demeanor, but Bella
could clearly see the strain in his neck, and the apprehension held in the
straight line of his mouth. She could
hear the woman speak calming words to him.
“Jacob, if that really is Bella, she obviously is not here to hurt you or me. Look, she and the man with her didn’t even
follow when we ran. That has to say
something.” She rubbed his arm in a loving way that made Bella smile a little.
“And didn’t you say that when their eyes are yellow that they eat animals
instead of people?”
Jacob reached down to clasp his large hand over hers
as he nodded, but he never took his assessing eyes off of Bella and
Carlisle. It felt completely unnatural
to be this close to a vampire in his human form. His muscles twitched, eagerly wanting to
change back. He stopped their
progression when they were about twenty feet away. Bella watched as his nose wrinkled in
distaste. She considered herself lucky
that she and Carlisle were up wind.
“Hey Jake.
Long time no see.” Bella smiled, trying to break the ice cold stare he
held her in.
“Yeah.”
“You look well.
It is good to see you again,” she tried once more.
Jacob was holding onto his cold exterior, “So, our
assumption was right. One of your bloodsuckers
turned you into a leech back in Forks.” It was a statement, not a question.
The girl smacked his arm with a low but stern,
“Jake.”
He ignored her and went on, “You do realize, that in
doing so you broke the treaty my great grandfather made with you, and we have
every right to hunt you down?” he spoke directly to Carlisle this time.
“Jake no—it wasn’t like that,” Bella interjected and
stepped forward, causing Jacob to pull the brunette behind him. Bella saw the tremors in his hands and
worried for the woman’s safety.
“Jacob listen, please. It is not like you think. I was dying in the meadow.” She wasn’t proud
of her actions back then, but she needed to own up to them. “I tried to kill
myself.” She choked on the words, but knew they had to come out.
Jacob’s shock took over causing his hands to stop
shaking and seemingly to knock the wind out of his lungs. “You what? You tried to…kill yourself? Why Bella?
Why would you do that?” he pleaded.
Bella shook her head. “My human memories are foggy, but from what I
remember, and the parts that the family has filled in, I was beyond distraught
over Edward’s death. I cut my wrists and
waited to bleed out when Carlisle found me.” She shifted slightly closer to her
mate’s side as she smiled up at him softly.
Her gratitude and love reflected in her eyes before she turned back to
Jacob.
“I lost a lot of blood and passed out before he discovered
me. When I regained consciousness and
realized that I was not dead, I had a breakdown and fell into a semi-catatonic
state. The family cared for me. They nursed me back to health.”
Jacob stood in complete astonishment as he
listened. If they had helped her to get better, why the hell was she a vampire?
As if Bella could hear his unspoken question, she
went on to explain Victoria and Riley’s attack on her. A soft growl radiated out of both Jacob and
Carlisle at the mention of their names, but Carlisle coughed as if to clear his
throat to try and mask the sound. Bella
squeezed his hand and smirked at him.
“So you see, Carlisle saved me. Jacob, he is not just my savior, he is the
love of my existence and now my fiancé.
He is who I was always meant to be with.”
Jacob warred within himself as Bella spoke of loving
this—this parasite. But then he felt the
small arms of his love wrap tightly
around his bicep and he was catapulted back to that first moment when he laid
eyes on her. There are some things that
you cannot fight. He felt his anger slip
away as she looked up at him nearly the same way that Bella looked to Carlisle.
Bella continued, pulling his attention back to
her. “Please don’t be angry Jake. I understand if—if we can’t be in each
other’s lives now, but it would kill me to think that you were somewhere out
there hating me.” Bella’s voice quivered slightly. “If you have to hate me,
then at least lie to me this once and don’t tell me. I don’t really want you to confirm my worst
fears.”
Jacob looked at the vampire before him. Her features were more angular, and her
peaches and cream complexion had faded to a soft alabaster white. Her eyes were no longer the chocolate brown
that he had known his whole life, but he could still see Bella. She was still there. The way she bit her lip when she was upset, and
the way her hair would fall into her face no matter how many times she would
tuck it behind her ear. She was still
Bella.
He sighed heavily releasing the last of his anger. “I
don’t hate ya, Bells.” He smirked then. “You are kinda a freak show now, but I
could never hate you.”
Bella felt the venom pool in her eyes, which was as
close to crying as she would ever come. She hesitantly stepped forward, wanting so
badly to hug Jacob but not sure if the gesture would be welcome. The smiling woman by his side pushed Jacob
forward in encouragement. He tentatively
stepped forward at first before striding to where Bella stood. He opened his arms to her, and Bella happily
fell into the familiar but now scorching embrace.
They both huffed in disgust at the smell of the
other and they looked at each other, laughing out loud, effectively shattering
the remaining tension. Jacob stepped
back and held his hand out to the petite woman.
Carlisle stepped closer to be by Bella’s side again.
Jacob smiled down at the beauty at his side, “Bella,
Carlisle, this is my wife Stephanie.
Steph, this is my best friend Bella and Dr. Carlisle Cullen.”
Bella smiled at the title she thought she had
rescinded by her current state of being.
She held onto Carlisle’s hand like a talisman. She had not had this close of contact with a
human since she was one, but there was something about Stephanie that made her
as appealing to drain as taking a bite out of Jacob. Maybe it was the fact that she was cloaked in
his scent which was just short of venom fried worm.
Stephanie was truly a beautiful woman. The goodness of her soul seemed to radiate in
her welcoming smile.
“Bella, I can’t tell you how happy I am to meet
you. It is nice to meet you too Dr.
Cullen.”
“Please call me Carlisle.” He said with a smile, “It
is a pleasure to meet you as well Stephanie.”
Bella didn’t try to bridge the gap between them as
she still didn’t trust herself one-hundred percent. She smiled as she watched Jacob hang his
giant arm protectively over her shoulder.
It was an awkward reunion, but one that Bella would
forever be grateful for. They made small
conversation for a little while longer.
Stephanie explained how she had met Jacob as she was training for a
marathon and had tripped on a patch of loose stones just inside the La Push border. Jacob had been running patrol in the forest
nearby and heard her cry out when she fell.
He quickly shifted and appeared ‘out of nowhere’ to offer his
assistance. With that, Jacob, being the
last loner in the pack, imprinted and they had been inseparable ever
since. They were up in Canada on their
own version of a wilderness hike.
Bella was glad to hear that Charlie and Sue were
well. Carlisle still gave her the
reports from the private investigator that he got on a regular basis, but it
was good to hear it from someone who actually knew Charlie and not just an
outside observer. Jacob had mentioned
seeing some of her old school friends down on the rez on occasion. Bella smiled but could not recall a face to
go along with several of the names he had thrown out.
Carlisle sensed Bella’s unease with the situation
though her face gave nothing away.
“Bella my love, we should be heading back home. I am sure Alice is worrying since my phone
hasn’t stopped buzzing since we have been here.”
She nodded and turned back to Jacob and
Stephanie. “I am glad you are happy
Jake. That is all I ever wanted for
you. It was really nice to meet you Stephanie.”
She added with a smile.
“You too Bella. Carlisle.” She gave a small nod.
“Take care of yourself Bells. Don’t eat anything I wouldn’t,” he said with
a smirk.
Bella couldn’t help herself and laughed. “Yeah,
okay.”
She exchanged email addresses with Jacob, promising
to keep in touch, and then they were off.
Bella had never expected to see Jacob again, but now that she had, she
was happy to know that she could keep that piece of her past life, even if it
was only as pen pals.
“Are you okay?” Carlisle asked after the silence
became too much for him.
Bella slowed her run to a human paced walk. Carlisle copied her stride. She reached for his hand which he happily
offered in return.
“I am. I just
never expected to ever see him again, and I feel a little overwhelmed. But in a good way,” she added at the end.
Carlisle pulled her hand to his mouth and kissed the
back of her fingers. As long as she was
okay with how things had played out, then that was all that mattered.
They kept their hands linked, but picked back up
into a run all the way back to the house.
~*~
The holiday season had sped through since it was
combined with the preparations for the wedding.
They were now just a day and a half away from the nuptials.
Since it was an all vampire affair, many traditions
could be foregone such as food and beverage.
Even chairs for the ceremony were not a necessity, but Alice said they
would make for better photos, so the chairs were in. They were expecting several guests from
around the world. Carlisle was the kind
of soul that people gravitated to, so this did not surprise Bella in the
least. She only had two concerns. One, was that the majority of the guests
lived a more traditional way of life, and therefore, did not feast on the local
wildlife. Bella worried about the nearby
towns. However, Alice assured her that
the invitation was worded in such a way that the guests knew to satisfy their
thirst before they entered the area. Her
second concern was pulling up their long driveway at that very moment.
As the Denali’s rolled up in their Excursion the
Cullen’s stood in wait on the front porch.
Their faces held warm greetings, but their emotions reflected something
completely different. Jasper tried to
send waves of calm; however, this was increasingly difficult when his own
apprehension was humming just below the surface of his gentile façade.
The car parked and Eleazar was the first to
emerge. He waved in salutation as he
circled the front of the Excursion to open the door for Carmen. Bella worked to reconcile the cloudy images
of her human memories with the beautiful couple before her. Jasper noticed her relax as the recollection
of their generosity of heart strengthened their hold in her mind. Carlisle felt her lean forward to make her
way down the stairs to welcome their friends.
Bella’s smile turned from a mask to a full hearted version as she walked
closer.
That changed though, as the back door of the vehicle
opened to allow the three sisters to exit.
Bella paused momentarily at the sight of them. Carlisle tightened his hold around her waist
to reassure her that he would always be by her side, and if a choice was
required of him that there was never really any choice to be made. Bella recovered herself and continued her
stride to the couple in front of her.
“Carmen, Eleazar!
It is so good to see you again,” she welcomed them as she embraced
Carmen affectionately.
Carmen smiled at the gorgeous vampire in her arms.
“Bella, you look radiant. This life
suits you my darling.”
Bella pulled back slightly to meet the golden eyed
vampire. “I am so glad you are here.
Thank you for making the long journey to celebrate our wedding with us.”
“As if you could keep My Carmen away from such a
festive occasion.” Eleazar chimed in as he embraced Carlisle in a hug of true
friendship. “It is wonderful to see you, old friend. You look…” Eleazar paused trying to find the
right word. “Happy.”
“I am, my friend, I am.” His face lit up with a
grand smile as he looked over to his bride-to-be.
Bella smiled at Eleazar as she and Carlisle
exchanged partners.
“Bella, it is good to see you well. We were terribly worried when we heard tell
of your attack. Thank the gods that
Carlisle and the others were able to get to you in time,” he added earnestly.
Bella nodded in agreement.
A huff of indignation came from the trio still
standing near the rear of the Excursion.
Bella ignored it, but the others turned their
attention to the sisters. Alice led the
rest of the Cullen’s from the porch to greet their Alaskan cousins. Tanya was the first to make her presence known.
“Wow! The
house is still standing, even with a newborn on the premises. I’m surprised,” she called out as she walked
over to greet Emmett. “How are you Emmett?”
“I’m good Tanya.
You look well,” he responded stiffly.
He had had his reservations about allowing the
sisters to come to the wedding after the way they treated Bella on their last
visit, but it was not his call.
Kate was sick of all this forced friendliness. Despite Carmen and Eleazar’s warnings that
she needed to behave and respect Bella’s place in the family, she strode
towards Carlisle with lust in her eyes.
Her lips curved in a voracious smile as she opened her arms to embrace
him, and then she was hit with a burning sensation that knocked her to her
designer clad butt.
“Ouch! What
the hell is that?”
Rosalie couldn’t help herself. “Kate, meet Bella’s
shield. Shield meet Kate.” She offered a
formal introduction to the invisible force which did not seem to have hindered
her other family members.
Kate was on her feet a split second later looking
bewildered and slightly annoyed. Brushing
the snow from her clothes, she reached forward cautiously before retracting her
fingers from the burning heat that met her inches from Carlisle’s arm. She examined her finger tips to find no sign
of harm.
“I don’t understand.
How could that be Bella’s shield?” Kate inquired with disdain as she
gestured to Bella who stood over five feet from Carlisle at the moment.
Carlisle smiled apologetically, but Jasper was fully
aware of the mirth he was holding in. “I’m sorry, Kate. That would be my mate’s not-so-subtle way of
expressing her displeasure at you touching me.”
He looked over to Bella who remained standing
between Carmen and Eleazar, an arm linked behind each of them. He shook his head, but the smile on his lips
showed his true emotions. She shrugged
her shoulders as the new comers looked on in awe and maybe a touch of fear. Their presence did not register with Bella
and Carlisle, for in that moment, as their eyes remained trained on each other,
there was no one else.
Jasper cleared his throat, and Alice giggled at the
scene that flickered in her mind and just as fast disappeared. If not for the quickness of her vampire mind,
she would have missed Bella’s idea of mounting Carlisle in front of Kate. But when she saw the sly smile that danced on
Carlisle’s lips, she had doubts whose idea it had actually been.
“Come. Let’s go inside.” Carlisle ushered the guests
ahead of him as Bella stepped to her place at his side.
Carmen gave Tanya a meaningful stare, and she knew
exactly what was meant by it. She took a
deep breath and stepped forward towards Carlisle and Bella. Irina, seeing this, walked over to join her
sister. It was now or never.
“Bella, I am not sure if you remember our last
visit, but Irina and I would like to apologize for the way we acted,” Tanya
began.
“Yes, it was unkind, and our anger was misplaced.”
Irina piped up. “We hope that you can find it within you to forgive us.”
Bella was taken aback by the sincerity of the
sisters. She had honestly remembered
more of the feelings that they had evoked rather than their actual words, but
either way, an eternity was a long time to hold a grudge over something she
couldn’t even clearly recall.
“Of course.
We all can act irrationally when we are upset. Ask Emmett,” she said with a small smirk.
The sisters turned to see Emmett rubbing his arm
over his shirt where he held the scar of the newborn tantrum he had brought out
of Bella. They turned back to Bella and
each smiled at her in gratitude and maybe a little trepidation.
Kate said nothing, though she could feel Carmen
burning a hole in the back of her
head. She didn’t care what the others
thought. She felt she had no reason to
apologize to Bella, and she adamantly refused to do so. She quietly joined her sisters as they walked
towards the house.
Jasper felt the consternation rolling off the three
sisters as they forced themselves to turn their backs on what appeared to be a
very powerful newborn, a newborn whom they had each done wrong in her human
life. He laughed, but Alice’s elbow into
his ribs cut off his amusement.
The two families gathered into the living room which
was still adorned with Christmas decorations.
Alice begged Bella, but she insisted on leaving them up a few extra
days. After all, it was only the thirtieth. This was a whole new experience for her. The way the lights played off the ornaments
did wondrous things that she had never had the ability to appreciate before
now.
They talked of the holiday and hunting trips they
had been on recently. Carmen and Eleazar
regaled them all on their trip to Africa.
Bella sat riveted on the arm of Carlisle’s chair, his arm resting on her
thigh as his fingers ghosted over her knee cap.
It was a seemingly mindless gesture, but it did not escape Kate’s
attention. Jealousy boiled in her veins,
and had it not been for Alice’s vision and quick thinking, she may have erupted
rendering them one cousin short.
“Kate, what have you been up to lately? Did you make it to Milan this past spring?”
the pixie asked in interest.
Kate’s ominous stare snapped to Alice as her eyes softened.
“I did. I’m
sorry you couldn’t come this year. I
know you were busy with other
things,” she said with an accusatory glance towards Bella. “You would have
loved the new line from D&G.”
Alice blew it off with a wave of the hand. “Fashion
comes and goes. It is not every day that
you get to watch your sister come into her new life.”
Kate wasn’t through though. “Truly, you are all so
good to give up your own lives for the past… What is it now, two years to take
care of Bella here? What a handful she
must have been to require all of you to stay on.”
Bella felt awkward as she realized that Kate was
inferring had they not needed to babysit her through her dark time and her
newborn stage, Alice could have easily gone to Italy for something that she
would have obviously enjoyed, and the others could have been doing so much
more.
Carlisle squeezed her knee to call her attention
down to him. He released his hold only
to grasp her hand and pull it to his lips; kissing it softly for everyone to
see. What the others did not see was how
he turned her hand to block the view of his mouth, allowing him to part his
lips and trace a circle with his tongue against her flesh. It was something he had never done before…to
her hand. That little trick was
something he reserved for another part of her body. The thought of his mouth being on her lower
lips had cut off all other thoughts. She
thanked God for her inability to blush as Carlisle circled his tongue once
more. His ocher eyes flashed to onyx as
he stared up at her.
Jasper stiffened in his seat as the tidal wave of
lust hit him. He knew where it was
coming from, but he had no way of stopping it.
There was too much for him to contain, and it poured from him like
Niagara Falls. Soon, it was as if
someone had turned the heat up in the room, though none of the occupants were
susceptible to heat—they all felt it.
Looks of desire were shared between mates as
Carlisle was the first to stand.
“Please excuse us,” he spoke abruptly but always
with consideration.
He may have been addressing the others in the room,
but his eyes were locked on Bella’s. She
eagerly followed him to their room as the other mated couples retired to their
own. Carmen and Eleazar made their way
to one of the guest rooms without pause.
They had not felt a level of desire this far reaching in some time and
were happily swept away by it. There
were advantages to being in the presence of an empath.
It was a matter of seconds before only the three
sisters were left alone in the living room.
The sounds of closing doors, torn clothing and a blend of different
musics was all that could be heard.
“I need to get out of here. There is a town—what, fifteen miles west of
here?” Tanya asked of her sisters.
Irina nodded. “Yes.
There must be men there.”
Tanya was on her feet at the door. “Let’s go!”
Irina followed Tanya’s lead, but Kate seemed shell
shocked by the head-spinning turn of events.
“Kate?” Irina called, “Are you coming?”
She shook off her shock before looking at her
flustered siblings. “No, you two go on.
I am going to go for a quick hunt.”
Tanya shared a look with Irina and then Kate was alone. She listened for a moment, for what, she was
unsure. But she heard her que to leave
when Carmen began moaning in Spanish.
She had lived with her and Eleazar long enough to know that it was best
to put some distance between her and the lovers when their native languages
made an appearance.
She ran out the back door towards the woods cursing
herself for not changing out of her Jimmy Choo’s. She kicked them off and left them on the
railing of the gazebo. That was when she
heard them.
She turned to look back at the house and above the
sound of the music she heard Bella’s hands hit the glass of the new sunroom. She was bent forward and leaned against the
wall as Carlisle filled her from behind.
He pressed one hand to the center of her back keeping her in place as he
took his pleasure.
Kate smirked to herself. He
can’t even fuck her while facing her. I
knew he didn’t love her. How could he
love her? She was nothing. She was a pathetic waif of a girl when she
was human and she was barely more as a vampire.
It was as these thoughts reinforced her resolve to
interrupt the marriage—which had been her plan all along—that Carlisle pulled
Bella upright; his chest pressed to her back.
His left hand caressed her breast lovingly as the right turned her face
to his. He kissed her passionately as he
continued to thrust up into her. And if
that was not enough, she heard his words—words that cut her to the quick.
“I love you my Bella. My love, my soul, my all. Promise that you will never love another.”
“Not if I live for a hundred-million years,” was her
breathless response.
Carlisle smiled at her reply as if it was what he
had always expected her to say. He
turned her to face him, their bodies never losing contact. He sat in a nearby chase and Bella rode him
as he chanted over and over, “My Bella.
My love. My Bella. My love.”
His hands gripped her rounded ass urging her to
deepen her thrusts upon him. Her head
tipped back allowing her hair to fall down nearly to his fingertips. Her moans grew louder each time their bodies
collided.
Kate felt her heart break as she turned and ran into
the woods. She wasn’t far enough though
when she heard Carlisle scream out Bella’s name as he climaxed. Kate’s eyes filled with venom as she ran harder
and faster. She was alone. Her chance at happiness slipped right through
her fingers. She cursed herself for not
snapping Bella’s neck when she had the chance all those months ago. Now, he was gone and she was alone.
Kate had been running for hours heading south,
barely pausing when she jumped the border crossing into the United States. The scene she had been privy to replayed in
her mind over and over. Damn my vampiric perfect recall. She had been running on autopilot for so long
that she did not even notice when another vampire had been within sight and
called out for her attention before stepping into her running line.
“Whoa there beautiful. Where’s the fire?”
His voice startled her, and she threw her hands up
in defense.
“Ahhhh Shit!” the stranger called out as the
electrical shock coursed through his body from Kate’s hands.
She jumped back as the man twitched on the ground
for a second longer. He found his
footing and flattened the stray hairs that had fallen loose of his leather
tie. He stood tall, easily over six
foot. He had beautiful sandy blond hair
set off by his crimson eyes. He dressed
in hiking attire with a large pack on his back.
“That is one hell of a handshake you have there,
beautiful,” he said with a disarming smile.
Kate could not get past her own emotions to see the
nomad clearly and began parrying her way around him, never turning her back to
the stranger.
“You deliberately stepped in my way. I make no apologies for defending myself.”
She cut back.
“As you shouldn’t.
It was completely my offense. So
I should be the one to beg your forgiveness.”
He bowed to her in a way that she hadn’t seen in near
three hundred years.
His kind mannerism was befuddling and Kate backed
away at a quicker pace.
The stranger righted himself and smiled once more.
“I guess it is here that we shall part ways.
By your leave, my timid fawn.” He bowed once more, and Kate took the
opportunity to sprint away.
“What an odd man that one,” she said to the wind without
breaking her stride.
She finally stopped and found herself in a clearing;
a wolverine stood at the opposite end.
Before the animal could register her movement, she had it pinned to the
ground as she drank her fill.
She sat for a long while contemplating what she
could do. There were many options such
as traveling. But when push came to
shove, she knew she would go back to her family. She was not built for the nomadic life. She desired the company of her sisters as
well as Carmen and Eleazar. And though
she could defend herself better than most, there were always the inherent
dangers of traveling alone. Without a conscious decision, Kate found herself
running back to the Cullen homestead as the new day broke.