~30~
"Bella? Princess?" I cooed at her as I ran my hand up and down her back soothingly.
At 'Princess' her head snapped up at me.
"He's gone!" She started to smile and it became distorted as her whole face crumbled, another round of sobs escaping her.
"Who's gone?" I asked dumbly.
"Carlisle," she choked before wiping her sleeve across her nose. Glancing at it, I noticed this wasn't the first time she'd done this.
In fact, her hair looked limp and straggly and she was a bit...muskier...than normal.
"Carlisle?" She'd said it like it was someone I should know.
"Carlisle, my husband, well...not anymore..." She broke down in another round of that weird laugh then cry then laugh thing she kept doing. As she clarified, I realized she'd never used his name with me.
To me, he'd been nothing more than Mr. Cullen or Bella's husband, i.e., the man in my way to happiness.
Now he was also 'Carlisle'...and he was gone.
"Please princess, can you explain?" I asked gently, rubbing the upper part of her arms as she took deep breaths, attempting to calm down.
"They came last night and told me...he was over in Jamaica, business I assume, and he flew and they said...his plane...the wreckage was found Saturday but it took until yesterday to identify and then find me and so it was late and..." She took a deep breath and just looked at me.
"And?" I prodded.
She bit her lip and looked up at me from under wet lashes. "He's dead." It was a breathy whisper, but it seemed to echo around the room.
Gotta love that he's not disgusted with her smell and snot...