Disclaimer: Stephanie Meyer owns all.
Rated M for several reasons. Dribble of lemon juice ….
Chpt 24 Saved by the Bell
BPOV
Bella goes bye, bye. Once again Jasper's kisses have wiped away any sense of self other than physical sensations and painful yearning. Somehow I'm now sprawled out on the bed with his cool hard body pressed against me, his mouth still making magic with mine and his free hand roaming lightly across my neck, shoulder and arm occasionally brushing tantalisingly against the swell of my breast.
My overheated body is bathed in a sheen of sweat, t-shirt stuck to it like a second skin. He is mostly still but from time to time his body arches against mine, hips thrusting at me in a way that has me squirming and trying to get that pressure where I need it.
My hands are everywhere, moving through his hair, feeling the muscles if his face and jaw as he kisses me purposefully and gliding over his bare back marvelling at the hard muscles sliding under his seemingly stone skin.
My nipples are aching painfully and I moan, with an answering groan he shifts position, free hand moving to stroke gently around the peak of my left breast while his thigh comes up between mine, pressing against my throbbing flesh.
Within moments I'm whimpering in desperation and his hand stops teasing my nipple which he takes between his finger and rolls, hard enough to change the dull ache to delicious pain. At the same time he increases the pressure of his thigh between mine.
And I really lose it, grinding myself against him with total abandon, mewling and moaning into his mouth.
With an answering groan he releases my swollen lips and lowers his mouth to my other breast.
"Oh god." I whimper, closing my eyes and burying my head in the pillow as his teeth close gently around the peak.
His cell starts ringing.
"Fuck." He growls, releasing my breast and leaning down over the side of the bed to snatch it up.
Conversation starts up immediately at vampire speed and I lay there underneath him gasping like I've run a marathon and hoping that it isn't Edward or Alice on the line.
Ending the call he raises himself up on his arms and closes his eyes.
I stare at him helplessly as my personality and inhibitions resume control of my unruly body.
He opens his eyes gazing down into mine and it almost seems like he can actually see the negative emotions seeping back in and taking charge.
His thigh pushes against me again and I gasp and arch my back automatically.
"I hate to leave a woman unsatisfied." He murmurs, face inscrutable.
"Please." I beg him. "We shouldn't be doing this."
With a sigh he leans down and presses a chaste kiss to my lips before rolling onto his back, pulling me with him so that I'm curled against him with my head resting on his chest.
We lay there in silence while my breathing and body return to normal.
Maybe Edward's right and there is something wrong with me. If the cell hadn't rung god knows what I would have done, I certainly don't. Damn, I bet I would have enjoyed it. Oh my god there is something wrong with me. I should be up, away from him, tugging my clothes on furiously and giving him a thorough telling off. Not curled into his side like a lover, like I have a right to be there, which I don't.
"I'm a slut." I mumble miserably.
"You would never have gone through with it." He chuckles, stroking my arm gently.
"How do you know that?" I snort, highly dubious.
"Because I know you." His tone is firm. "You would never do that to Alice or Ed, no matter how much your body wanted to."
He inhales deeply and murmurs throatily. "And I know how much it wanted to."
"Doesn't that make me a slut?" I ask in a small voice, ignoring the shiver that runs down my spine.
"No." He says with another chuckle. "That makes you a perfectly healthy eighteen year old in bed with a one hundred sixty year old lothario."
I can't help but giggle at the mental image that conjures up.
"You don't look a hundred and sixty."
"Thank you, ma'am." He drawls. "That's always nice to know."
We lapse into a surprisingly comfortable silence but after a while he starts laughing again.
"What?"
"Have you recovered enough from your attack of self-loathing to be curious about the phone call yet?" He asks.
"Oh, yes, well?"
"It was Rosalie, the Italians have gone, we can go home."
"Oh."
He pulls me easily on top of him so that I straddle him.
"Or." He waggles his eyebrows. "We could stay here a bit longer and pick up where we left off."
"That's, very tempting . . . ." I hedge.
"I should damn well hope so." He growls raising an eyebrow at me.
I giggle again which does interesting things to the way our bodies are touching. This time I do jump off him, like a scaled cat, desperately trying to pull the hot sweaty t-shirt down around me and jam it between my sticky thighs.
He throws his head back and laughs as I crab walk into the bathroom, slamming the door behind me. Asshole. He's either flirting with me, scaring me to death, or reducing me to a pile of semi sentient goo then making me feel like a fool.
Coming out I find him back in his jeans magnificent scarred chest glinting in the light and bare toes peeking out of the bottom.
"Do you have a problem with clothes?" I demand, still annoyed.
"Only around you darlin'." He winks, putting out the fire and holding out Rosalie's coat for me to slip on. "I was in the shower when our uninvited guests arrived, you're lucky I stopped to put pants on."
"That was a dangerous situation wasn't it?" I ask, fastening the buttons with suddenly shaking fingers. "We could have all been killed."
"Yes." He sighs, sliding his arms around me and pulling me back into his chest in a surprisingly comforting gesture.
"I thought you were going to kill me. You were absolutely terrifying."
He is silent for a moment and then he laughs again, pushing me away. "We should go before the Ed Head follows us here and does something stupid."
"Why, will he be angry with you?" I ask, following him out the door into the blinding whiteness.
"He's going to assume the worst." He answers dropping down so I can climb onto his back.
I wrap my arms around his neck and rest my face between his shoulder blades.
"He'd be very nearly right." I mumble, feeling ashamed again.
"Ah now darlin' that wasn't anythin' like nearly." He chuckles breaking into a gentle run. "Maybe one day you'll let me show you nearly."
"You're a very bad man." I tell him, trying to sound stern but failing miserably.
"I keep tryin'." He sighs theatrically. "Hold on tight, you are now travellin' vampire airways."
He surges forward with a burst of head snapping acceleration and this time I squeal in delight.
My eyes are tightly closed to prevent accidental vomiting but the increased warmth in the air goads me to open them. We're out of the snow and travelling through a vaguely recognisable green smear.
"Won't be long now." He shouts over the rush of wind.
I nod against his back and close my eyes again.
I wake up some time later cradled in Jasper's arms with a canopy of green above us and a darkening evening sky just visible through the leaves.
"We're almost there." He greets me with amusement. "I thought you might like to travel the last bit under your own steam, and awake. Are you sure you don't suffer from narcolepsy, you're always falling asleep."
I huff and he helps me sit up, keeping me cradled to his chest, my head resting against him and his chin on the top of my head.
"Ready to go back to reality?" He asks after a few minutes.
I shrug and he laughs softly.
"Just remember Bella. You haven't done anythin' wrong, don't let anyone else's hang ups make you feel bad about yourself. I'm the only real bad guy around here."
I nod, sounds easy enough but I'm not convinced.
"And do me a favour."
"What?"
"Put the Ed Head out of his misery, I can feel every angsty little thing he's feelin' an' unless you actually want me to kill him, it's the kindest way to go."
"We're finished aren't we, Edward and I?" I ask in a sad voice.
"From where I'm sittin' at my lofty PhD level?" He laughs. "Yeah, you're done."
I nod and he helps me to my feet, taking my hand to help me across the dangerously flat forest floor.
Sooner than I thought we emerge from the trees into the meadow and almost immediately the rest of the Cullens stream from the house and rush to greet us, Edward in the lead.
Jasper gives my hand a squeeze and then releases it, hanging back slightly.
"I see you managed to get my coat dirty." Rosalie drawls as she crashes to a stop beside Edward.
"I'll get it cleaned." I promise her with what I hope is a winning smile.
"Bella." Edward darts forward, gripping my arms tightly. "I'm so glad you're okay. I was so worried about you . . . ."
His nostrils flare and his eyes darken, zooming over my shoulder to lock with Jasper's.
"What did he do to you?" He demands, shaking me slightly.
"He didn't do anything." I lie smoothly while the tiny voice screams childishly, he kissed me Edward, with tongue and everything!
"His scent is all over you." Edward snarls, stepping back face twisted with jealousy. "What have you done?"
"Wow. Edward." Jasper drawls with perfect sarcasm. "That's some respect you're showin' there for the woman you claim to love."
Em sniggers.
"Edward." Carlisle says with a hint of irritation. "I know you have been worried about Bella but Jasper is right. This is unacceptable, his quick thinking saved her life and all of ours. He has been hiding her and carrying her, of course she is going to smell like him. Use your nose."
Oh yuk. I squirm in complete mortification, of course they can smell every little biological thing that goes on in my body. Oh god, somebody just drain me now.
Behind me Jasper chuckles at my discomfort. Asshole.
With the exception of Rosalie and Em they're all staring at me like exhibit A. That's it, I think mutinously, have a good old sniff and make your own minds up about whether I've been a naughty girl or not.
"What does Charlie think happened?" I ask Rosalie by way of distraction from my mounting, and under the circumstances unreasonable, anger.
"He thinks you have a head cold and spent the day in bed." She answers with a smirk.
"Will you take me home please?"
"Of course." Still smirking. "Your bag is already in the car."
I take a deep breath and start forward, the Cullens parting before me like the Red Sea but before I can make it all the way to the car Edward darts around blocking me.
"Bella, I'm sorry, I jumped to conclusions." He apologises in a rush, beautiful face twisted in anguish. "His reputation, you've been away for over a day. I'm sorry."
I scowl at him. Anger still building inside me as I have a brief but fundamental fight with myself. I might have been on the verge of doing what they all assumed, we'll never know, but their lack of faith in me, the stupid naïve little high school human is infuriating. Who died and made them better than me, it's not my fault Jasper and Alice's relationship is shit even if I'm not supposed to be capable of understanding why.
Eventually I win, or lose the fight, depending on your point of view.
Raising my middle finger I brandish it in his face. "Fuck you Ed." I hiss stalking past him and getting into Rosalie's car.
She hops into the driver's seat immediately breaking out into peals of laughter as we speed down the drive.
Eventually she calms down enough to speak.
"That was awesome but I hope you realise that Em's going to blame me for the 'fuck you'. But god, the look on Ed's face when your finger nearly went up his nose, it was practically worth the terror of lying to The Volturi. I'm afraid Alice is spitting bullets . . . ."
Her uncharacteristic rush of words comes to an abrupt stop when she realises I'm sobbing my heart out.
"Charlie's on nights." She says quietly. "Chocolate?"
I nod wiping my streaming nose on her coat.
"Char?" She snaps into her cell.
"Bella's back, we need chocolate, wine and a kick-ass pillow mountain."
"No, it's not entirely your brother's fault."
"Yeah, I'll go around the block a couple of times, she hasn't completely covered my coat in snot yet so there's time."