FOUR

"What's wrong?" I questioned back. "Is he okay?"

"He's in shock," Alice supplied in hushed tones as she ever-so-slowly tucked her legs underneath her. She glanced at the man, regarding him silently, then turned her eyes back to me, catching my incredulous expression. "Yes, Bella, vampires can go into shock. It doesn't happen often. It only happens during times when they are just overcome with too many emotions. Emotions are more intense for vampires, and when they're overwhelmed, they go into a type of sensory overloaded. The only vampire that I've seen it happen to before is Jasper. It doesn't happen all the time, but because Jasper feels and absorbs the emotions of practically everyone he comes in contact with, it happens more frequently with him than with most vampires. This is the only time I've seen Carlisle go into shock."

Esme agreed with Alice. "I was changed not long after Edward, and I've never seen Carlisle shut down before."

"Shut down?" I could feel the panic growing inside me. "What's going to happen to him?"

The matriarch shook her head. "Nothing is going to happen, Bella. I promise. When a vampire goes into shock, it's pretty much our body's way of forcing us to stop and let our mind have time to comprehend and absorb everything. Vampires have an eidetic memory. Every single little thing that we do, say, think, see, smell, feel... any input we encounter, we remember forever. Normally, our brains can keep up, but sometimes, when you add to all of that stimuli enormous waves of emotions, it becomes too much. Our body just shuts down temporarily to keep us from doing much of anything while it sorts out all the input. We can't speak. We can't move. We can't breathe. The only thing that we have left is our hearing and vision.

"However," she drawled, "instinct is the strongest force within a vampire. If you were to make any sudden movements, his distracted brain would see it as a threat. Because you're his mate, he can't possibly directly hurt you. Unfortunately, that doesn't mean that he can't hurt himself and pull the house down around our ears."

I glanced at Carlisle, still frozen like a statue. "So… he can see us and hear us?"

"Yes," Esme replied. "They're protective measures. If we lost all our senses during shock, we would be vulnerable to attack."

"What triggered it?"

Alice bit her lip and looked uncomfortable. "Well, I don't want you to feel guilty, but knowing you, you will anyway. It was probably hearing you laugh and seeing you happy. He's been fretting about how you are handling the entire situation. That has pretty much been the only reason that he hasn't gone into shock already. Seeing you relaxed was a trigger in his mind that you are okay. Knowing that you are both physically and emotionally okay, his mind gave his body the okay to shut itself down."

I let my eyes drift back to Carlisle, who had obviously dressed before coming downstairs. The black slacks hung low on his hips and a perfectly tailored, steel-blue, button-down shirt hugged his muscled chest and mouth-wateringly broad shoulders. I was so thankful that the sleeves were once again rolled up, revealing his powerful forearms. God almighty, he had the most gorgeous body on the face of the planet! I resisted the temptation to look up into his eyes because I felt a bit guilty sitting here discussing him, especially knowing that he could see us and hear every single word. Not that it would have really mattered, I guess. There was no place in the house that we could go and not be heard. I bit my lip. "I supposed that it's probably rude to talk about him when he's like this."

"Probably," Alice chirped happily. "But it's not like we can go anywhere if we don't want him to destroy the house. Even if we could leave, we can hear for miles. And what were we supposed to do, Bella? Not tell you what's happening and let you sit there and panic?"

I sighed. "Good point. But... well... it's got to be uncomfortable, don't you think? I mean—" I barely waved my hand in his direction "—look at him! He can see and hear everything we do. It's got to be awkward."

"I know! Isn't it great?" the black-haired girl giggled wickedly.

I gaped at her, noticing that Esme's lips were twitching with a suppressed smile. "Alice!"

"Oh, c'mon, Bella!" she exclaimed with a smirk. "It's funny, you have to admit. He's stuck there. He can't move. And we could tell the most embarrassing and dirty stories and he can't do anything about it."

Esme gave up the ghost and chortled before cutting the sound short. She threw a bemusedly apologetic glance up to my mate. "I'm sorry, Carlisle, dear, but she's right. It is kind of funny."

"Oh my God!" I stared at them both, trying desperately to keep my expression under control. "You two are horrible!"

Alice gave me a big smirk. "Then why are your lips twitching?" When I mumbled 'are not', she burst out laughing. "You know that you want to laugh, Bella!"

I could feel my face turning bright red. I felt bad, really I did, but they were kind of right. I could not let my mate see me laughing though, so I dropped my head into my hands as my lips curled into a grin.

"I know you are not laughing, cara mia," he whispered in my ear.

I let out a blood-curdling scream and jumped a good foot into the air, landing beside the sofa with a loud thump. I glared up at the three vampires who practically roared with laughter. I reached behind me, grabbed two pillows, and hurled them at the two females before snatching the afghan and hugging it tightly. "That was not funny," I murmured petulantly, glaring at Carlisle as he sat beside me on the floor. "And just how long were your supposedly frozen?"

He smiled and drew me into his embrace, and despite my annoyance with him, I let him hold me close. "I came out of my shock while you were undressing me with your eyes." When I growled, he chuckled loudly. "Has anyone ever alerted you to the fact that you look simply adorable when you are irritated? It is very much like watching an angry kitten when its master takes away the string, bouncing around and hissing with its little claws out."

I glowered at him. "You know, I can sleep alone tonight!"

He smirked. "You could, but you will not."

I raised an eyebrow. "Oh really?"

"You cannot say no to me, mia diletta," he replied confidently.

I hummed in disbelief and clambered to my feet, instantly feeling his chest against my back and his nose nuzzling behind my ear. When he began to purr, the sound tickling my ear and his chest vibrating against me, I felt my knees go weak. I knew the only thing keeping me upright was his strong arms around my trembling form.

"Are you entirely certain that you wish to sleep alone tonight?" he purred, his tongue darting out to trace the shell of my ear. "I cannot deny you anything, mia passerotta, if that is what you truly wish," he teased me.

Sweet God above, this man was going to be the death of me, truly he was. Although, I was not quite sure how his family would explain 'death by sexual tension' to my father.

Not caring that we had witnesses, I turned in his arms and kissed him passionately, running my arms over those sinful shoulders. When I pulled away, I stared hungrily at him as the phrase 'melt in your mouth, not in your hands' flitted through my lust-soaked brain. Before I could rein myself in, I whispered, "Take me to bed."

.

I had been both relieved and disappointed when, after returning to Carlisle's bedroom, he had gently placed me beneath the covers and simply held and nuzzled me while I drifted off to sleep. As much as I cared for him, and as strong as our bond seemed to be growing, it was still very fast. I felt that I had not really had a chance to catch my breath all evening. He seemed to sense this, so while I was certain there was an instinct deep within him to now mate physically with me, his love for me won out. He was giving me time to adjust to the sudden shift in our relationship. I also could not help but wonder if it was also because he needed time to adjust to the rising urges of his vampiric nature.

Whatever his reasons had been, I was very grateful. I fell into a blissful sleep, the vibration and sound of his deep purr surrounding me.

When I woke, the glass wall revealed a gray morning. I realized that Carlisle must have opened the curtain at some point during the night. I yawned and stretched before rolling over onto my side, feeling a tingle of elation to find two citrine eyes watching me and darting over my features and the waves of my hair. When he leaned closer to kiss my lips, I smirked, keeping my lips pursed as he raised an eyebrow.

He seemed thoroughly baffled for a moment, but when I continued to grin, my lips firmly shut, he exhaled heavily and shook his head at me. "Mia gioia, certainly you are not denying your mate the pleasure of your divine lips simply because you are worried about a little morning breath?"

When I frowned, he smirked, so I rolled off the bed and trotted toward the bathroom, only to find it blocked at the last moment. I lifted a hand to shoo him away. He only shook his head. I stomped my foot. He leaned back against the door. I growled menacingly at him. He growled right back, grinning the entire time. I stared at him for a few moments, before coming up with an idea.

With a bright smile, I turned on my heel and took two steps toward the bedroom door, watching him blur by to block me from leaving. I then immediately spun around and grasped the bathroom door handle. I wrenched it open and dashed inside, only to be caught before I could even make it to the sink. I shrieked in protest as I went soaring through the air in his grasp. I huffed when his lips came down on my mine and parted them with ease. I held his gaze as he kissed me, his eyes twinkling with the laughter that vibrated in his chest. I tried to continue glaring, but it was useless, so I returned the kiss happily as his arms drew me closer.

He released me after a few moments, smirking triumphantly. I rolled my eyes at him and strutted back into the bathroom, closing the door behind me, only to yank it back open immediately. I exclaimed rather loudly that I had no clothes to wear, and he laughed. I saw him lift a pair of jeans and a sweater that I had not previously noticed off the chest-of-drawers.

"Esme sneaked into your bedroom last night and brought back something for you to wear." He passed the clothes to me, grinning like a cat that caught the canary. "I'll have breakfast waiting when you come downstairs."

I slammed the door and muttered 'smug bastard' underneath my breath, knowing full well that he could hear me. I then stood for a moment and took in the utter opulence of the bathroom.

The floor was made of pale gray porcelain tiles and the walls were a startling white. A large, glass walk-in shower was in the far right corner, and along the back wall was a shelf covered in the fluffiest towels that I had ever seen in my life. To my surprise, a flat-screen television was mounted between the far left corners. I could not, for the life of me, figure out why a television was in the bathroom. I mean, I knew several humans who did the same thing, but humans regularly took baths and showers. Vampires, I knew, were not plagued with the same bodily functions as my species and therefore did not sweat. Of course, I supposed they could have just enjoyed a bath for the pure pleasure of it. Why not? I did quite regularly.

The actual tub was a massive Jacuzzi that could fit four people, at least. It was surrounded by white and silvery marble, or at least it was on three sides. There had to be at least one panel that was fake in case something malfunctioned and it needed repair. It had small steps leading up to it. Four white pillars, with ivy and wisteria curling around them, stretched from the floor to the high ceiling. The ivy and wisteria, one of my favorite flowers, amused me. It was beautiful, of course, but the idea that Carlisle had allowed his bathroom to be decorated with vines and flowers was quite humorous.

I went to the sink, surprised to see my toothbrush with a note attached to it. I got some of your stuff last night. Alice and I put up the plants during the night. She said that you love wisteria, so I thought you'd like it. Relax and enjoy it! ~Esme

The only thing that escaped my lips was 'awww!'

I was touched by their gesture.

With a glance at the small clock above the sink to check the time, I decided that I would definitely be putting their thoughtfulness to good use. I quickly brushed my teeth and washed my hair before filling up the massive tub and starting the jets. As I relaxed, I turned on the television and quickly searched through the satellite listings until I found some music. I smiled as the soft sounds of acoustic guitars filled the air and closed my eyes, letting the bubbling jets lull me into a lovely little trance. When a knock at the door broke through my bliss-filled state of being, I frowned. "I don't wanna go to school," I slurred unhappily to whoever disturbed me.

Alice's tinkling laugh made my lips twitch — no one could possibly stay upset with the pixie. "Bella, your breakfast is almost ready, and we have to be at school in about forty minutes. Get your butt out, dry off, and get downstairs and eat!"

"Yes, Ma'am!" I chuckled, dragging myself out of the exquisite bathtub and drying with one of the towels that felt if it were made from clouds. I briefly wondered if it would be possible to wear the large towel to school, but I ultimately decided that it would be a rather inappropriate idea. I quickly pulled on the stonewashed jeans and a brown sweater. When I made my way back into the bedroom, I saw Alice holding a pair of kitten heel sandals and cringed. "No! Alice, just... no. You know how klutzy I am, even on flat feet!"

She grinned. "You're going to need them today, I can assure you," she said with a mischievous twinkle in her eye. "I promise, Bella, that you are not going to fall and break your neck."

I snatched the heels from her and slipped them on. "That doesn't mean that I won't fall and break something else, though."

She sighed. "Bella, you are not going to break anything inside anyone, I promise."

"Sprain my ankle?"

"No!" She hopped up off the blue comforter and grabbed my arm, leading me slowly down the stairs. "Bella, I promise. Nothing is going to get broken. Nothing is going to get sprained."

"Have you checked my future?"

"Yes!" she exclaimed in a shrill voice. "You are not going to break anything, I swear! Would you please trust me?"

I somehow managed to make it into the kitchen and onto a stool at the island without falling, but I still did not trust Alice or her promises that I was not going to break something today. I glared at Carlisle, who slid a plate that was covered in hash browns, eggs, and strawberry-banana pancakes toward me. I then leveled my stare at Esme. As I lifted a spoonful of scrambled eggs to my mouth, I muttered darkly, "Your child is trying to kill me."

Carlisle blurred behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist and burying his lips in my hair. Whether it was because he simply wanted to hold me or because he did not want me to see his bright grin, or possibly both, I was not sure. Esme just chuckled and promised that they 'wouldn't let that happen', to which I blithely retorted that the pixie could see the future and that she could make it happen. When Alice made a comment about me thinking that she had it in for me, I smirked. "After that stunt you three pulled last night, you better damn well believe I do."

She just grinned, while Esme hid a giggle behind her hand and Carlisle's chest vibrated with laughter. "I am truly sorry, mia diletta, but your reaction was too wonderful to pass up."

"I'm glad that you found my terror so entertaining," I playfully growled, receiving a purr in response. Sweet God above, I love that sound.

When he pressed a gentle kiss to my temple, I shivered, and he noticed immediately. "Are you quite okay, bella cigna?" he teased, knowing exactly why I was shivering. "Perhaps, I should take you upstairs and examine you?"

I felt heat flood my face and my mouth fell open as embarrassment flooded my entire being. I could not believe that he just said that in front of Alice and Esme, who only seemed amused by response. Not quite sure of how to react or what to say, I simply sliced into the pancakes and shoved them unceremoniously into my mouth.

"Perdonami, cara mia," he cooed contritely in my ear, licking behind the sensitive shell as he tightened his grip. "Forgive me."

I smiled before tipping my head back to gaze at him. "It's okay. I'm not upset, just surprised." When the worry in his eyes faded away, amusement taking its place, I kissed the underside of his jaw before turning my attention to my breakfast. "How much crap am I going to catch from Jessica today?" I asked Alice after taking a large gulp of milk. "I know she's going to be all over Edward's absence."

Alice gave me an amused, but apologetic smile. "Do you really want me to ruin your day before it even begins?"

"That bad, huh?"

She sighed, her topaz eyes watching me sympathetically, though I could have sworn there was a trace of humor there. "The majority of the day really isn't that bad, Bella. It gets a bit rough at one point, but it works out fine. I promise."

I felt cool fingers start to massage my neck, then a slight English accent drawled in my ear, "If it will make you feel better, I can come to see you tonight when Charlie's asleep." I murmured my approval and moaned contentedly when he nuzzled the side of my throat. He inhaled my scent deeply before drawing away. "I'm afraid that I must leave for the hospital, as my shift starts soon. I promise, mia piacevole, my pleasure, that I will see you this evening." When I hopped off the stool, nearly stumbling in my haste, his arms tightened around me to catch me and his lips claimed mine passionately. As he released me, he seemed hesitant to go. "Will you be all right?"

I touched his cold cheek tenderly and gave him a small smile. "I promise that I will be fine. Alice will be there, and I have every class but one with Angela Weber. But if it will make you feel better, I will text you between classes. Okay?"

This appeared to relax him greatly and he gave me an adoring smile before embracing me again. "Thank you, Isabella." He pressed his lips to my forehead, sighing. "I am sorry, amore." When I questioned him about why he was apologizing, he simply gave me a slight smile. "I promise that I will speak with you tonight about it. It is nothing upsetting, I assure you, but it will take too long to explain at the present time." He kissed me again. "A dopo, cara mia. I will see you later."

He disappeared, and when I heard his Mercedes rumble to life, I turned back to my breakfast, thinking about his farewell. Apparently, I must have been deeper into my reverie than I realized because Alice's voice cut sharply through the air, asking if I was okay. I blushed, not wanting to give away my thoughts. "Yeah, just... thinking."

"About what, sweetheart?" Esme queried, looking as equally concerned.

I shook my head. "It's nothing. Really, I-I'm just being silly is all."

Alice rolled her eyes. "Bella, if it has anything to do with Carlisle then there is nothing you can say or ask that would be silly. You may have been hanging around vampires for a year, but that doesn't make you an expert. Hell, Carlisle's almost four hundred, and even though he can give you clinical knowledge about anything vampire-related, he's certainly never experienced even half." She perched herself on the edge of the counter. "What's up?"

I felt my face grow even hotter as I mumbled, "Um... Does..." I tugged on my ear and glanced at everything in the room but my friend and my mother-figure. "Does Carlisle speak in Italian often?"

When Esme chortled, I wanted to fall through the floor due to my embarrassment. "No, Bella, dear," she said kindly. "In all the years I have known Carlisle, the only times I have heard him speak in Italian is when greeting the members of the Volturi, and only in greeting."

"Oh," I murmured, dropping my eyes to the countertop in the hopes of hiding my silent delight.

I found it very sweet and very romantic that Carlisle seemed to be using this language as an expression of his feelings for me.

My reaction garnered a chuckle from Alice. "Bella, is that what you were worried about?"

"Alice," Esme drawled in warning. "Don't tease Bella. I'm sure if you were in her position, you'd wonder the same thing." She turned her gentle eyes to me. "Now, Bella, dear, you need to finish up so you can get to school on time."

Within fifteen minutes, I was finished and trudging out the door, not wanting to face the questions that I knew that I would face. After all, the Cullens were rarely, if ever, out of school unless it was a sunny day. With the skies pouring rain, Edward's absence would definitely be noticed. But oddly, aside from the questions that I knew it would bring, I didn't really mind.

.

TBC

In the words of Bob Ross:

You can move mountains, rivers, trees. You can determine what your world is like.