Disclaimer: I don't own anything and I never will. Oh well.
A/N: So coming Wednesday my friend is most likely going to have to have a hysterectomy because the mass has become too large going across her entire abdomen. And me being the best friend I volunteered to be her surrogate if they are able to harvest her eggs. If she ever doubted our friendship (she hasn't that I know if) proof that I am a ride or die!
I smile as I walk into the kitchen. I still feel like I'm on overload, but I'm really happy Tanya and I talked. I don't know how I feel about the whole mate thing, but I don't think being Tanya's mate would be all that bad. A hell of a lot better than be Edward's honestly, but I still need time to figure out how I feel towards her because I would hate to send her mixed signals or anything like that.
I'm glad she and I can talk to her and she actually does worry about hiding information from me. Edward wouldn't have cared how I felt towards him keeping information from me, and honestly in all the time he and I were together we never had a truly honest and heartfelt conversation like Tanya and I just did. I just hope meeting her whole family goes well. From what I hear they are nice, but Kate and Irina have a tendency to go too far. This is going to be interesting.
Tanya's P.O.V.
I'm so glad my talk with Bella went so well, and even better she still wants to be around me even though she knows about my strange anatomy. I pull out my phone and call Carmen real quick and ask her to bring the family over to the house. I don't stay on the phone long but I make sure she knows that Laurent is to come too. I don't answer any of the questions she asks me and instead tell her to wait to get here.
I hang up and head into the kitchen with Bella. I sit down next to her as she continues to eat her breakfast. We don't say anything really, but instead we decide to just enjoy each other's company. I love times like that with Bella. We don't have to try and everything is just really easy and comfortable.
"When will they be here?" Bella asks in between bites of her half-finished plate of food.
"I'm sure they'll be here in a few minutes. You know how Carmen can't help but baby you, what better time than in the morning when you need to eat because I am incapable of making sure you eat." I say rolling my eyes.
"Well you did forget one time." Did she seriously just say that?
"It was one time, and I didn't think I had to remind you!" I forgot to make her lunch to take to school one time! That was back in the first month I knew Bella I was more concerned with make sure she was actually getting some sleep, and I told Carmen I would make her lunch for school since the food there makes her sick. I forgot and neither of them has let me live it down so far.
"Well Carmen thinks you do. Anyway is Laurent coming with them?" She asks finishing off her plate and walking to the sink to start washing it.
"I told Carmen to make sure he came with them, but I never told them why. I felt like you would like to explain that yourself." If I have learned anything about Bella it's that she likes being able to do things for herself. Except cook she is more than happy to let somebody else cook for her. Especially Carmen but I think that has something to do with her mom never really cooking for her and she loves the motherly aspect that comes with Carmen.
"Good. I want to talk to him. I don't want him to continue to leave with guilt that isn't his fault." She says as she finishes the dishes and takes off into the living room to wait. I'm surprised she hasn't commented on house yet.
"Okay I have to ask. How do you have running water in the room we stayed in and in the kitchen, but the house is clearly not finished?" She says as she looks around to the wires still hanging out of the rooms.
"I made sure we had the important things done for when you would come over. Right now we're currently staying in the Cullen's house, but I didn't think you would want to stay there. And we'll of course we have cheap furniture in the living room when we're here during the day working. The house should be finished in about two weeks full furnished and everything." I say looking around realizing how much we have actually got done.
"You know for vampires you sure do build houses rather slowly." She says smiling at me as she sits down on the couch.
"Hey! It's not our fault Carmen is a perfectionist! She is like a plaster Nazi. If there is so much as a single air bubble she's not happy." I laugh as I sit down next to her closer than I intended.
"I bet that's fun." I can feel her move a little bit closer to me and I can't help but smile. I am trying not to get my hopes up about her accepting the fact that she's my mate so soon. "So when are the others going to be here?" She says pulling me away from her thoughts.
"I can hear them actually so they're about a minute out." She nods her head silently as she looks at the door waiting for them to burst through.
About a minute later the whole family burst through the door looking crazy as hell. "What the hell was so urgent that Carmen all but threatened our lives to be here as fast as possible?!" Kate shouts looking around the house as if it were about to burst into flames at any given moment.
"I'm sorry I just wanted to meet all of you. I hope this isn't interrupting any plans you might have had." Bella says trying to fight off a blush.
"For you? Not at all Bella I'm always free." Kate says she sits down next to Bella and slings her arm over her shoulders pulling her closer, and further away from me. I can't help but growl at my sister. I know she's just joking around but she's gone a bit too far.
"Kate, stop before Tanya kills you, and trust me when I say I will NOT help you." Irina says as she pulls Laurent to the love seat.
"Okay girls behave. You are grown adults I didn't think I would need to tell you to act your age." Carmen says as she remains standing with who must be Eleazar.
"Hi Carmen," Bella says with an awkward wave. "Sorry about last night." She mumbles as she hangs her head.
Carmen in the blink of an eye is kneeling in front of Bella as she grabs both of her hands gently. "It's okay dear I was just worried about you. Are you okay? What happened?" Carmen asks with concern.
"I umm...it's been a while since I've ran with a vampire...it just kind of shocked me is all. I'm sorry I worried you, but I clearly don't handle speed very well." She says trying and failing to make a joke.
"I'm so sorry! I was trying to go as slow as I could! Why didn't you tell me we could have stopped?!" Carmen all yells in Bella's face terrified that she has hurt the human she has come to think of as one of her own.
"Love Bella looks fine and I'm sure if you had caused her harm Tanya wouldn't have let you stand so close to her. How about we all calm down a little bit because I don't need Jasper's power to know that Bella is feeling awkward and embarrassed over your fusing." Eleazar says smiling at his wife and her antics.
Carmen quickly looks at me and Bella before she nods her head and goes back to standing next to Eleazar. "So Bella, why did you wish to see all of us?" Irina says from her spot next to Laurent.
"I just wanted to officially meet all of you. Tanya's told me a lot about you well except Laurent I didn't know about you until last night, but I just wanted to get to know all of you better." Bella says as she politely shrugs off Kate's arm and leans closer to me.
"I hope you didn't bring all of us here just so you could have some sort of revenge against my mate." Irina says as she moves closer to Laurent in an almost protective manner.
"Irina, would you calm down. If Bella wanted revenge against Laurent why would she want all of you here when all she would really need is him? Stop trying to jump to conclusions." I said defending Bella from my sister's accusations.
"Umm thank you Tanya, but I understand why your sister is protective. But I actually don't want revenge against Laurent. I actually wanted to speak to him in private if that's okay with all of you." She says looking around at all of us, but mostly at me as if she needs my permission.
"You don't need to ask me angel." I don't want her to treat me like I'm Edward. I'm not going to try and control her; she's her own person and that's how it is going to stay.
"I would love to talk with you Bella." Laurent says trying not to sound too excited.
I watch as Laurent and Bella stand up and start walking to the door. I smile as I continue to watch them walk outside.
"So have you two had sex yet?" Kate asks completely ruining the moment. I'm just glad Bella is out of hearing range by now.
"Dammit Katarina!" I shout as I hit her upside the head.
"Girls behave, and Tanya you didn't have to hit her it might knock more sense out than in." Carmen says smiling at the both of us.
"I resent that statement! I have plenty of sense I just don't like to use it. That's why I keep all of you around because you provide the sanity to my insanity." I just roll my eyes at her.
"We are not having sex anytime soon, but she does know about my penis." I say as I hear a collective gasp from my family.
"Did you tell her? How did she handle it? Are you okay?" Carmen asks as she rushes to my side to take Bella's previous spot.
"I didn't tell her actually, but I forgot to keep her at a distance from my lap and well she's apparently known for a while. She handled it extremely well she was more upset about why I didn't tell her. And I'm perfect. I told her she was my mate, and she didn't absolutely freak out. I mean she didn't jump into my arms and confess her undying love for me, but I can tell she's not trying to deny her feelings for me. Whatever they are, and I'll take whatever I can get at this point."
"Well that's fantastic Tanya. I've very happy for you." Eleazar says still standing in the same spot with his arms crossed.
"Is anybody else curious as to what Bella wants to talk to Laurent about?" Irina says still looking at me.
"I know the jest of what's going to be said, but I'm sure they will tell us whenever they come back." I say as I try to change the subject to finishing the house.
Laurent's P.O.V.
I'm trying so hard to contain my excitement about Bella wishing to speak to me alone, and the fact that Tanya is 100% okay with it means that Bella knows I won't hurt her. Bella and I continue to walk until I am sure we are out of hearing range of the family so we can't be disturbed. I find a trunk for Bella to seat on and I stand next her waiting for whatever she has to say.
We stand there in silence for what feels like forever even to me, but was most likely on a few minutes. I really want to know what she has to say. "I'm really glad you wanted to talk to me Bella. After what happened with James and Victoria I thought you would never want to see me again let alone talk to me."
"I never blamed you for what happened with James. I know you came back and offered as much help as you could, and I also know that Edward was very rude to you about it. Tanya told me that you still blame yourself even though nobody has ever said it was your fault. If anything it is on James and Victoria alone because they're the crazy ones that continued to chase me while you left and clearly found happiness and turned a new leaf in terms of your food of choice. I'm very proud of you." She says smiling at me and I can't even begin to explain how happy what she said makes me. I feel like Bella is the sister I never had, and her being proud of me is something I never knew I needed, but now that I have it I never want to lose it.
"You don't know how happy that makes me. Over time with hearing how much Tanya talks about you I've grown to think of you as a little sister to me. I've always wanted a little sister, and the fact that I've made you proud brings my dead heart joy. Can I hug you?" I ask not wanting to make her uncomfortable.
"Of course you can. You never have to ask." She says as she stretches her arms out inviting me.
I pull her into my arms and hug her as tightly as I can without hurting her. While we're embracing I couldn't help myself. "Soooooo...you and Tanya, how's that going?"
"Ugh!" She groans as we release from our hug and she sits back down on the tree trunk. "I don't even know right now. Last night we were talking about all the lies that Edward told me like how I was his mate, and then right off the bat Tanya says that I'm actually her mate. So far Tanya has never lied to me as far as I know, and I just don't know what to do. I don't love Edward not after what he did and said to me in the woods, and I just know how I feel about Tanya right now."
"Speaking of Edward I hope you know Tanya and I plan to kill him next time we see him. And I believe Carmen is going to kill the rest of them most likely by herself if given the chance. She's seriously piss at their cousins." I can't blame them I don't understand how they could just leave her alone like that.
"Honestly after everything that's happened. The only cousin I still consider family right now is Alice, and that's because I don't quite know how just yet but I know she has come part in all of this. It wouldn't be her if she didn't. I thought the other Cullen's considered me family, but they all abandoned me the first chance they got. I don't think I could ever forgive them from that." I can understand why she would feel that way from what I have heard about her actual mom.
"Bella I'm not going to try and influence your feeling in any way all I'm going to say is follow your heart and do what you feel is best for you. Whether you are Tanya's mate or not don't allow that to force you to feel like you have to love her because that's what nature or fate has told you. The last thing you need to be controlled because that's what Edward did from what I hear and all this family wants is for you to be happy. If you wish to be with Tanya great if not that's great too. Regardless you will be family to us and family never leaves each other behind no matter what." I see tears start to run down Bella's face, and for a split second I was worried that I had hurt her feelings in some way until she jumped into my arms and started hugging me as tight as she could.
"Thank you, I truly needed to hear that." She whispers still hugging me and crying.
"You are welcome Bella. Also before we head back can I let you in on one very important fact about mates?" I ask because I feel like it will be helpful to figure out her feelings.
"Sure," she says as she sniffles as she whips her tears.
"I want you to know that no matter what happens come hell or high water mates can never be apart for long especially when a vampire's mate is human. The vampire will always feel the constant need to be within reach of their mates if something were to ever happen." I finish as I sling my arm over Bella's shoulder as we continue back towards the house.
"Thank you. Laurent I will have to keep that in mind." She says as she wraps her arm around my waist in a very sisterly manner.
"We should spend time together more often. I enjoy your company as I do believe the girls need to start spending some more sister time together, and Carmen would love to steal you away from us for some prime bonding time."
"I wouldn't hate spending time with you. I mean I've had worse conversations." She needs to work on her sarcasm.
"You are not sarcastic, but lucky for you I am the King of Sarcasm as I can show you the error of your ways and lead you towards the light. Also I might be able to help you with that blushing problem." I've totally bribing her to spend time with me and I am perfectly okay with it and I have no problem with it.
"You are very persuasive. I will have to pencil you into my very busy schedule. Actually I should start spending more time with all of you since I'm part of the family, and you aren't going anywhere anytime soon." I look as I see the house getting closer and closer as the trees start to thin out.
"You would be correct. Now let's hurry up Tanya is starting to get a little cranky." I laugh as start walking towards the front door with smiles on our faces.
A/N 2: I get to go see my best friend in the hospital tomorrow and I am beyond excited! So in my way of celebrating I made sure I finished this chapter today so I wouldn't have to worry about it tomorrow.
