A/N: Luce's dream (the second/non smutty one featuring Rosalie) may mean something... *Wink wink* You shall have to wait and see, mwahaha. I honestly love all of the readers of this story, you are all so lovely and supportive. I'm breaking this chapter up again, so hopefully it'll tide you over till the next update! Keep an eye out for the next chapter - so much fluff, you're gonna drown in it...
Chapter Ten
"No, no, no!" I yelled running around my room. My frantic panic was halted only after I tripped over a still unpacked suitcase. Where the hell are my black lace up booties? I need my sexy shoes!
The past couple of days had been agony awaiting today. I'd spent all of my time recuperating and eating soup (bleurgh). And telling Charlie about the date had been just as agonising. Holy shit had that been awkward.
"Ahem, Charlie?" I slipped into the kitchen on Friday evening, to see Charlie scrubbing some pans in the sink.
"Mm?" He hummed tiredly. Charlie's drooping gaze remained on the soaking dishes, as I mooched over to his side.
"So... How's it hanging?" I winked at him.
Pause. Charlie's eyes flickered over to me in suspicion.
"What do you want?" Charlie asked, his eyebrow raised and his hands pausing from scrubbing the pans.
"Well..." I dragged out the word, with an upward lilt in my voice. I widened my eyes, and jutted out my bottom lip to add to the effect. "I might, very possibly, have been asked most definitely, to-"
"Spit it out, Luce."
"I have a date tomorrow!"
SPLASH. All of a sudden Charlie and I found ourselves covered and dripping with tepid soapy dishwater. Charlie blinked at me blankly, whilst I preoccupied myself with dribbling out some soapy water I'd accidentally inhaled (through both my nose and through my mouth, yuck).
"So, that cool? Fab! See you later!" I clapped my hands and spun towards the door, praying that would be it. I was wrong.
"Woah, woah, hold on a minute there." Charlie grabbed the back of my jumper with an uncomfortably damp hand, causing me to choke unattractively as my collar cut into my throat. "A date?"
He released my jumper, turning me back towards him. I rubbed my throat a little, grumbling at him.
"And who is this date with then?"
"Um, Rosalie Cullen." I stepped back, out of range of another soapy attack. Charlie's eyes widened.
"Oh, you're? I didn't realise you were? I just assumed you were... Girls? Um..." Charlie stuttered out, awkwardly fumbling around with a tea towel, mopping up the water trailing over the kitchen counter.
"Bella never told you?" I blinked owlishly in surprise. "I'm bisexual. Is that... Is that ok? I mean, with you? I wasn't sure if..." I stumbled over my words, suddenly scared that this man who I'd known all my life would turn on me. My fingers fidgeted with the hem of my jumper.
Charlie's eyes widened considerably, as he appeared to understand my fear. His gaze softened and he pulled me forward into a tight hug.
It startled me briefly, but I quickly returned the hug, my arms wrapped around his waist and my head buried in his chest. I made the decision to ignore the icky soapy wetness that was beginning to soak through both our jumpers.
"Oh, Luce, of course it's ok. I just want you to be happy." He softly patted the back of my head, not unlike how one might pet a dog. I wasn't complaining though.
I kept quiet apart from a small snuffle, a couple of tears leaking out and landing on his already sodden jumper.
"Thank you, Charlie."
I continued on my hunt for the booties. I scrambled over my bed, laying on my stomach and going upside down to look under the bed frame. Let's see... Cardboard box, black converses... Dead lampshade, spare pillow, spare duvet, giant furry spider... Wait. HOLY MOTHER OF ALL THINGS GAY, NO NOPE NOT TODAY, NOT TODAY SATAN. I let out a short scream of horror, before I paused mid scream.
The furry little Satan wasn't moving. Maybe it's dead. Hopefully it's dead. Please be dead. Should I prod it? Dare I prod it?
I do dare.
I reached out a hand to my bedside drawer and grabbed my Rampant Rabbit vibrator. Don't judge me. But I refused to touch that thing with my bare hands. The Rabbit's sacrifice will not go down in vain... My poor baby.
I sighed, and using my vibrator I prodded the furry thing beneath my bed. It didn't move. I nudged it harder with the Rabbit. Still nothing. Oh, thank god. I can dispose of it at a later date. I also need to remember to give my Rabbit a clean now. Damn it.
"Luce, a car just pulled up outside!" Charlie called up to me from his vigilant perch by the front room window.
Shit! Black booties, black booties!
"Wait, don't let her in! I'm not even cute yet!" I wailed down the stairs. Charlie's cackling laughter echoed through the house, Bella's giggles joining in.
Rosalie POV
Exiting her car and approaching the front door of the Swan residence, Rosalie could hear three beating hearts. Two of the heart beats were steady, yet one was racing with the speed of Speedy Gonzales.
Luce.
Rosalie listened carefully to the voices within the house.
"Wait, don't let her in! I'm not even cute yet!"
"Oh my god, Luce, get your butt downstairs!"
"I can't! My boots are hiding from me!"
"They're down here, you idiot!"
"Why are they downstairs?!"
"Because that's where you left them?"
"Oh, fuck off, Bells."
"Language!"
"Sorry, Charlie!"
"Sorry, Dad!"
"Right, Bella, do I look sexy yet?"
"On a scale of one to ten?"
"On a scale of a blob-fish-who-hides-in-the-hidden-depths-of-the-ocean-to-avoid-contact to Monica Bellucci-in-nothing-but-black-lacy-underwear?"
"Erm, Megan Fox?"
"Nice."
Rosalie was not sure quite what to make of that conversation. All she knew was that she couldn't remember ever being so nervous. If she were a human, she was quite certain that she would have sweaty palms, a high pulse rate, and a very flustered pink face. However, she was a vampire. So there she stood, outside her human's house, tall, stone cold, and silent.
However this didn't mean that she didn't display certain human characteristics, such as tapping a nervous rhythm out against her thigh, fiddling with her clothes, or taking deep (unnecessary) breaths.
Rosalie glanced down at her outfit. Her pale pink dress exposed her arms in short sleeves, and clung to her upper body, flowing down and skimming over her hips, the hem hitting mid thigh. She had debated wearing a tight, slinky little black dress, but Alice advised her that such a dress was better suited for a third or fourth date. On her feet were a pair of strappy stiletto heels, and in one hand she gripped a gold clutch bag, while in the other she held a single red rose.
She knew she looked good. That was never up for discussion. But whether or not her mate would like it? Now that was an entirely different ball game.
Rosalie strode towards the door and rung the doorbell, shifting on her heels ever so slightly in order to have a more 'human' appearance so not to scare or raise suspicion from her mate's guardian.
Rosalie reminded herself to stay polite to the man, if only for her Luce's benefit. Floating through her mind was Carlisle's earlier reminder that if she were rude, Chief Swan would be far more likely to put a stop to any future dates. That had certainly set her mind quick, as Rosalie would do her absolute best to ensure the success of this... Courtship? Relationship? Strange vampire mating bond?
The front door to the Swan house swung open, first revealing Charlie Swan and then hovering behind him Rosalie could see the Bella girl. No sign of Luce.
"Miss Cullen?"
"Please call me Rosalie, Chief Swan." She smiled dazzlingly at the poor man, whose eyes seemed to almost glaze over.
"Er, c-certainly. Please do come in." He opened the door even wider and gestured Rosalie to step through into the house. Charlie nudged his daughter an inch towards Rosalie, and muttered in Bella's ear, "Say hello, and go grab Luce."
"H-hi, Rosalie. It's nice to meet you." Bella squeaked out, nearly frozen from the borderline icy gaze she received. The pathetic looking human peeked at Rosalie's face, impressing managing to hold in a small flinch.
A nearly unnoticeable sigh and nod of the head was all the girl got in reply, but Rosalie couldn't find it in herself to care much.
"Ah, Luce was just putting her shoes on in the kitchen. I'll go grab her, see if she's ready." Bella sent her a wary smile, and shuffled off through the house towards the kitchen.
Rosalie turned back to Charlie Swan. She could see a bead of sweat forming on his forehead, his arms folded over his chest. Like his daughter, Rosalie could clearly see that the Chief was just as effected as his daughter, subconsciously picking up on the dangerous vibes that her vampiric nature emitted.
"Now, young lady. What are your intentions towards my godchild?"
As amusing as she found that question, Rosalie wasn't able to even attempt an answer before a soft British accent interrupted them.
"Charlie, I'm not your goddaughter, what are you on about?"
"Well, you may as well be! It might be unofficial, but the thought is there!"
"Sure, you keep thinking that. Now are you really going to interrogate Rose?"
"I'd do the same thing if you were going on a date with a boy. I'm stepping in for your father while you're staying here. I have a duty to uphold."
Rosalie couldn't give a damn about being interrogated, she was too distracted by what had just walked in the room.
Tight, high waisted, black jeans clung to the rounded, shapely curves of her mate's hips and legs, supported by a pair of black lace up boots. A deep v-necked wine red velvet top put her ample cleavage on display, over which she wore a tight leather jacket.
She looked... She looked, to put it simply, divine. Deliciously divine. Rosalie licked her lips, oblivious to the embarrassed, awkward fidgeting of the other two humans still within the room.
"You look beautiful, Luce." Rosalie cleared her throat, pulling Luce's attention away from teasing Charlie. Luce turned towards her, wearing a wide grin which faltered upon locking onto Rosalie.
Luce POV
My mouth dried out, and my heart leapt to my throat, as I took in Rose's seemingly inhuman beauty.
"Um, oh wow, er," I stumbled breathlessly. "Hi."
I threw a glance at Bella, and nodded my head towards the back of the house. She caught my meaning and ushered a weakly protesting Charlie out of the hall.
"Stay safe and have fun!" She called over her shoulder, before disappearing into another room with Charlie who clearly wanted to say more but at the sharp look from his daughter, he merely waved goodbye.
I turned back to Rosalie, who'd been observing with her warm, honeyed gaze. My eyes locked onto her, as I closed the distance between us. She shifted ever so slightly in her heels, her warm eyes following me as I drew to a stop in front of her.
"I don't think there's even a word to describe just how incredible you look tonight." I murmured breathlessly, my eyes running over her pale, delicate features. I could feel my fingers twitching - desperate to hold her, to touch her.
Rosalie stared back at me, a hopeful smile resting on her lips. Then her eyes widened as she seemed to remember something - she held out a single blood red rose to me, and as I reached out for it our fingertips lightly grazed against each other.
"Thank you, Rosalie." Using a pin I secured the rose to the left breast of my leather jacket.
I reached up to press a soft kiss against her cold cheek, quickly turning away so that she couldn't see the pale pink that I'm certain was tinging my cheeks. Taking her by the hand I gently pulled her out of the house. She reached out to close the door behind her, as she followed me down the porch steps with a grace that I could never hope to have.
Once upon a time I might have found myself frozen stiff, in awe of such a woman, and terrified to speak of anything. But tonight, I could feel the blood pulsing through my body, giving me the courage to take such a beautiful woman on a date.
The fact that Rosalie was driving a fucking bright red BMW convertible, gave me an icebreaker to start a conversation. She gripped her steering wheel so loosely, her gaze seemingly on me as much as the road, that I was unsure just how much control she had over the powerful vehicle. But she drove with such confidence that it was difficult to feel unsafe - despite the fact that the speedometer was currently at about 80 mph.
"I don't think I've ever described a car in such a way, but damn you've got a sexy car." I ran my fingers over the leather interior of the car seat, letting out a soft hum at the smooth touch. Rosalie sent a small smirk my way, as she nodded in agreement.
"Carlisle offered me his Mercedes for tonight, but I thought you might appreciate mine a little better." The tender smile that touched upon her mouth as she spoke of her car gave me pause.
"Are you a big fan of cars?" I queried. "I'm afraid that although I love both cars and motorbikes, it's probably more the aesthetics rather than the actual vehicles themselves..." I trailed off thoughtfully.
"Oh, yes, I adore working with cars. I'm actually a fully trained mechanic! I love to tinker with cars, and whenever we need to update or upgrade any features, it's normally me that does it! Alice is always telling me that it's not a ladylike hobby but I think that's a load of ol' hooey. Women did not fight for liberation to be told that we shouldn't do something because it's not ladylike. Though in fairness Alice was only like that when I accidentally ruined a brand new Prada jumpsuit and got covered in oil. She turns into quite the suck up whenever her Jazz's bike needs a tune up!"Rosalie's eyes brightened as she rambled on, laughing over her sister. I was filled with joy at the thought of her happiness, my heart thumping away in my chest.
This can't be normal, surely? I know that I'm falling way too hard, too fast. I barely know Rose, and yet... there's this bizarre pull in my chest that tells me I'm supposed to be here. That I'm supposed to feel this way.