A/N: You might want to skim the previous chapter before reading the update. I know it's been awhile.

To anyone that's asked via review or PM, or has been paying attention on Twitter and ADF, I've made it known that I did not intend to post again until chapters 29, 30 and 31 were complete. Then I would post one a week. There is a lot going on in the not-yet-complete Chapter 30, and today I decided that it was best to split it into two chapters. Which means suddenly that Chapter 30's first draft is done. So here I am posting with 29 complete and 30 almost complete. With any luck, I actually will be able to post one a week through chapter 32. But it does feel a little like counting chickens...

Many thanks to "Moonlit" readers, and my wonderful Twific ladies. You've all been so awesome to me these last months.

~*~ Chapter Twenty-Nine ~*~

Bella and Carlisle still hadn't spoken a word by the time they'd reached the house. Neither of them knew quite what to say as neither of them knew quite what to think. Everything had just been shaken up, and they each needed time to sort out their feelings. Both were aware that there was one other person they hadn't considered while they were caught up in the moment.

Only the ladies were in the living room, and rather than feeling festive as it had an hour earlier, the atmosphere was now more restful. Maggie and Esme were sharing the loveseat and reading. Maggie's legs were folded in as she leaned her head against Esme. Alice was reading, too. As Carlisle and Bella removed their coats and scarves she glanced up at them. Carlisle, in turn, observed that Vilhelm Moberg was not Alice's usual taste in literature.

"You two are quiet," Alice noted, turning a page in her book that she had not actually read.

"Oh, um, I'm just tired," Bella answered, shucking her boots off her feet.

"I hope it wasn't too cold for you." Esme lowered her book. "Did you have fun?"

"Yes, what did you two do?" Maggie asked.

Bella blushed and kept her face turned down, while Carlisle gave a simple answer. "I brought her out to Tilden Field."

"Yes," Bella added, trying not to look at Carlisle. "It was snowing, and the moon was out."

"It's a full moon tonight." Alice smiled.

"Why, Bella, your heart is racing. Is everything alright?" Esme put a mask of concern on her face.

Maggie tilted her head at Bella as if just observing this, and then she changed the direction of her gaze. "Is she alright, Carlisle? Did something happen?"

"I'm fine. Really," Bella protested, finally facing the living room. "I'm just tired."

"You're tired and you have an elevated heart rate?" Maggie raised an eyebrow. "Carlisle, perhaps you should take Bella upstairs and give her a closer look."

"No," Carlisle and Bella said at once.

Upstairs, Jasper mentally rolled his eyes, glad that he'd excused himself from being a part of this scene.

"That's not necessary," Carlisle continued, speaking quite normally. He put his hand on Bella's back. "If Bella is tired, then I'm sure we can let her retire to her room where she can rest and…" He awkwardly and abruptly dropped his hand. "…warm up."

"I just want to go to bed." Bella's gaze darted everywhere, making eye contact with no one. "Alone. Thank you, Maggie. Goodnight, everyone." She turned and rushed as slowly as she could up the stairs.

Carlisle remained where he was, studying each of the women. None of them had returned to their books, and Carlisle was quite certain that Jasper was actually the one who'd been reading the Swedish history book in Alice's hands. Making eye contact, he found Alice arching an eyebrow at him. "Am I missing something?" he asked.

"Not anymore, Carlisle," Maggie answered. All three women faced him, blinking a false innocence. Carlisle started to speak, hesitated, then silently turned and went up to his office. After the departure of the two confused lovers, there was some winking and snickering in the living room.

(~*~)

Bella wasn't sure how much time had passed while she lay awake in her bed. An hour? More? She started to look at her clock, but then didn't want to. The time didn't matter. She couldn't sleep until she'd figured this out.

Something had happened tonight. Something irreversible. Only Bella was fairly certain that she didn't want to have it taken back. She didn't want to forget that she had kissed Carlisle. That Carlisle had kissed her. Her heartbeat quickened and slowed, only to quicken again as her thoughts took her in multiple directions. Bella had to get herself under control.

She had kissed Carlisle. Fact. Okay. So what? She'd kissed Carlisle plenty of times before. Never on the lips, though. Never like that. Her body recalled the feeling of him on top of her, solid strength capable of breaking her like a twig, yet so tender. He was always tender with her, affectionate.

Wait. Stop. Go back.

She'd kissed Carlisle. Fact.

Bella wasn't free to kiss Carlisle. Bella was in a relationship with Matt. Facts.

Her stomach churned unpleasantly. She cared about Matt a great deal. He had been her first everything, just about. Her first boyfriend, her first lover, her first…

Bella had always been close to Carlisle, from the moment she'd nervously approached him in his office to confess her knowledge of his secret. Carlisle was the one to comfort her when she was scared of Edward, the one she'd finally been able to open up to about being attacked in Port Angeles. Bella poured her heart out to Carlisle about everything — violence, law, books, classes, friends, Matt.

Matt. Bella bit her bottom lip. Matt was four hours away right now, probably sound asleep. He'd likely be curled on his side, one leg bent at the knee. He'd only be wearing boxers, and the blankets would have fallen to his waist. Bella could picture the triangle of moles on his back, a spot she often stroked.

Bella's heart sped up again as she pictured Matt, lying in bed alone. A small gasp came out of her, the opening of a sob. "Matt," she said softly.

She'd kissed Carlisle. Bella scrunched her eyes shut, her fists coming up to her forehead. It was unlike any previous time they'd ever touched, and they'd touched a lot. My goodness, how much had she and Carlisle been touching each other over the years? It had never seemed to her before now like anything other than natural physical contact with a close friend. A cuddle or casual physical play between herself and Carlisle was simply the way they did things.

Bella raked her hands through her hair, over her face — and remembered what it had felt like to go three months without touching Carlisle. It was like a piece of her had been missing. Bella needed to always be touching Carlisle.

So what did that say?

Bella turned on her side, and then flipped onto her back again.

Every touch she and Carlisle had shared had always been platonic, a friendly love. Yet nothing had been platonic about the way they'd kissed each other tonight. It was an extension of every feeling that had ever coursed through her before: comfort, affection, lust.

Bella had felt lust for Carlisle before. It was the day the family had made fun of her conversation with Carlisle about language. Carlisle had joined in on the game, and when she'd heard him speak his original English, Bella had wanted to jump his bones.

Of course, she hadn't realized then what she'd been feeling. In retrospect, it was quite clear. She'd been sexually attracted to Carlisle, as far back as then — and she still was. It wasn't just a vampire lure. For instance, she didn't feel that way about Jasper or Maggie. This feeling, this feeling inside her now trumped anything she'd even temporarily felt with Edward that day in the meadow. It was so much more than sexual attraction when it came to Carlisle. It was friendship, understanding, communion, connection…

Bella's heart was still beating fast, and her breathing came in short little breaths.

No, there'd been nothing platonic about kissing Carlisle tonight.

How did Carlisle feel? He had moved over her, pressed his body to hers. If she hadn't known from the way he kissed her that there was something more on Carlisle's end in that moment, the memory of what she'd felt against her abdomen was very clear. Bella almost let out a moan. The mere thought of Carlisle's erection and Bella just wanted to . . . help him with it. In every way.

It wasn't her place. She was with Matt. Carlisle's sex life couldn't have anything to do with her.

Bella suddenly felt both sick and angry at the thought of someone else being physical with Carlisle.

But Carlisle hadn't been with anyone since… well, Bella didn't know an exact date. Nearly a century, maybe even a whole century. Carlisle was the only one taking care of his needs.

Now that was something she hadn't considered before. Bella wondered when he found opportunity to do it, and when he did, what he thought about. Had Carlisle ever sat behind his desk and undone his belt, loosened his pants, pulled out his cock and stroked himself, all while imagining being with her?

Good god, what am I thinking? Face red and heart pounding, Bella turned over and after a quick, flattening punch, buried her face in her pillow.

(~*~)

Carlisle listened to Bella toss and turn in her room, and lowered his head to his desk. This was completely his fault. He'd followed an impulse and kissed Bella. Kissed her, when she belonged to another. It was no wonder that she was restless and fretful – all due to him.

It was out of line, what he'd done. Matt didn't deserve the disrespect Carlisle's actions had demonstrated. If Bella were his, Carlisle wouldn't want another man kissing her in the middle of the night. His guilt increased because even now the thought of Bella in Matt's arms made Carlisle jealous and angry.

He wanted Bella to be his. Slowly, Carlisle raised his head. He loved her. He'd always loved her. Why hadn't he seen it before? Bella had intrigued him from the first, and quickly had become to matter to him as much as those closest to him. When she was gone, her absence had mattered more to him than the presence of the rest of his family, even when Edward and Rosalie had come for Thanksgiving.

The first time Carlisle had seen Bella he hadn't known what he was in for. She had been on his mind consistently since. He had, after all, looked up the medical records that revealed her once very accident-prone nature, and wondered when she'd come in again. And from the time he'd started worrying she had a crush, she'd been on his mind every day. He'd gone from that to worrying about her safety once he realized she'd known the truth. He thought about her all the time. The near-fatal encounter in Port Angeles, Rosalie's machinations, the prom with Edward — another jealous twinge at the thought — moving to Vermont, her relationship with Matt.

The stark reminder of the reality made Carlisle droop back over his desk. Bella belonged to another. What should he do? Was there any chance that she wanted him? Bella had most certainly kissed him back. Maybe she regrets that now? Listening to her fretful lack of rest, Carlisle had to acknowledge that she certainly didn't seem happy at the moment. Then again, neither was he, and he was quite certain that he had just kissed the love of his life.

For Carlisle could see very clearly now that Bella was indeed the love he wanted and had been waiting for. He couldn't even imagine being with anyone else. She was everything he'd ever wanted in a woman: intelligent, moral, selfless, beautiful. Her interests ran parallel to his, and he'd never wanted for a topic whenever they'd conversed together. Her growing maturity, the increasing knowledge in her eyes, their comfortable banter and touches, he'd savored all of it.

No, there was no other for him.

And just hours ago, under the moonlight, she'd been in his arms, under his mouth.

Was Bella willing to leave Matt? Was she ready to? If she was not, Carlisle would be here, and he most definitely was not going anywhere. He would wait for Bella no matter how long it took. She was meant to be his, because he would think of no other, love no other until the day God chose to take him away from this Earth.

(~*~)

Bella lay on her back again, took a slow, deep breath and closed her eyes. She needed to focus on her heart, which was feeling very full at the moment. Overflowing, even, and not in the good "my cup runneth over" kind of way. She felt too much and inside she was being pulled too many ways – but with one definite direction if she could make herself understand it. The emotions were confusing, rolling inside, outside and around one another.

She loved Matt. She didn't treat his presence in her life casually. For two years she'd shared herself with him, experienced life with him.

Yet she could say the same about Carlisle — to a point. She'd never shared herself physically with Carlisle. Though, revisiting her thoughts on how often they'd touched each other, Bella could see that she had, in a way.

Damn it, why was she getting so confused? Tension had built a mountain in her chest, formed from all the emotions that were churning inside her. She was both excited and unhappy. She loved two men.

She was only in love with one of them.

The personal insight finally came through.

She had to go. There was only one thing to do, and it needed to be done as soon as possible, face-to-face, whatever happened afterward. Bella slipped out of bed and got dressed. She would get breakfast on the road. The house was quiet as Bella went down the stairs, everyone seeking privacy in their own spaces. At the door, Bella put on her boots, wrapped the scarf around her neck. She grabbed her coat and managed to get one sleeve on before a voice stopped her.

"Bella?"

Slowly she turned around and saw Carlisle at the foot of the stairs. God, he looked gorgeous. Inside or out, there wasn't a more beautiful man in existence. Bella almost couldn't believe that just hours ago those lips had been on hers. His eyes were on her, taking in what she was doing and his expression was… wary?

Bella wanted to tell him everything, but she couldn't because she owed Matt more than that. It wasn't right, and whatever words she needed to say had to be said to Matt first. Slowly, she finished putting on her coat. "I need to see Matt."

"I see."

Do you, Carlisle? Do you have any inkling of what I feel? And what do you feel? Was it only an aberration after being alone so long? She didn't voice any of the questions. Bella only nodded and grabbed her purse.

"Be careful driving, please, Bella. If you get tired, pull over. I understand why you need to leave right now, but you hardly slept and it's early."

"I'll be careful." Looking at the wall — she couldn't look at him again or she might not be able to go — Bella took her wool cap out of her pocket and put it on. As she reached for the handle, she turned her head but still didn't look back at him. "Goodbye."

"Goodbye," Carlisle answered, and there was unmistakable sadness in his voice.

Oh no. Did he think that she was leaving? That she was going to Matt?

Bella's purse dropped to the floor with a loud thud as she turned around. Almost running, she strode quickly toward Carlisle, surprise registering briefly on his face before she put her hands on his shoulders and leapt up. Wrapping her legs around his waist, Bella grabbed his hair and kissed Carlisle with everything that she was worth.

His hands automatically came up to her butt to support her, and there was no hesitation in kissing her back. His lips were cool, but it didn't matter; she'd expected them to be, knew them to be. She intended to know everything about them very well, and more. Carlisle was kissing her back and soon his tongue was stroking her bottom lip. It made Bella want to groan and sink into him, but instead she pulled back. Carefully, she unwound herself from around him and regained her footing.

"I'll be back tonight," she whispered. In one motion she grabbed her purse, and ran out the door.

Carlisle watched her leave, full of fire and hope.

(~*~)

Nearly fours hours later Bella was still driving down I-91 and trying to anticipate Matt's reaction. Discomfort was permanently lodged in her gut with what she was about to do. She truly did not want to hurt him. Would he get angry? Matt had just told her last week that he was sometimes jealous of Carlisle. Wait – what? Unbidden, comments that Matt had made about Carlisle flowed readily through her mind.

As long as I'm still the one you love the most.

I know what your feelings for Carlisle are.

He's more important to you than I am.

Bella felt tears building up and she pulled over. Matt knew. Jesus, Jesus, how long had he known something that even she hadn't? How was she supposed to go to him now and tell him? It wasn't going to be easy anyway, but now… What was Matt going to think? Did he think she'd been running around behind his back? She hadn't been. Last night's kiss was the first and she was going to tell him about it. Then there was the kiss as she left the house. Should she tell him about that, too? What, dig the knife in a little further?

Wait. Maybe she was just imagining things, reading too much into the memories of what Matt had said. The thought might have calmed her, but she didn't believe it. It didn't matter. Bella was going to come clean. She loved Matt, but she loved Carlisle more.

Bella stayed in the breakdown lane for several minutes, breathing deep and gathering her courage.

(~*~)

Matt's family home was really an estate, with four stories in the main building and a 2000-square-foot guesthouse. The property was one of few left in the city that included more than 10 acres. She'd been to visit several times over the last two years, and had never failed to be intimidated by the wealth and history of Matt's family. Leaving her car parked in the cul-de-sac in front of the house, Bella knocked on the door. It was soon opened by the Dillinghams' long-time housekeeper, a stout woman with hair as gray as the uniform she wore.

"Hello, Mrs. Kelly," Bella greeted. "Is Matt in right now?" It didn't occur to her until this moment that he might be out of the house. What would she do then? Wait in the foyer until he returned? The idea was not a comfortable one. She couldn't enter his house as the welcome guest she'd always been. Not anymore.

"Bella!" Mrs. Kelly greeted with some surprise. "Yes, he's in."

"Bella?" Matt's voice came from inside the house, and soon he was at the door, too. "Come inside," he urged, stepping back. Mrs. Kelly had already walked away.

"Um," Bella stepped back herself. "Think you could come out here?"

"Out there?" he asked, puzzled. Then he saw her face, and Matt knew. The time had finally come, and he was about to lose Bella to Carlisle permanently.

A part of him wanted to yell. A part of him wanted to demand why she wasn't sticking with him, what had he ever done to fail her? But he knew that wasn't what it was about. It had nothing to do with whether or not Matt was good enough for her. There was an essential connection between Carlisle and Bella, the kind of thing that just was. He had been selfish to hang on to her so long, to try to win her heart when he knew that in the end, it belonged with someone else. He'd known he was setting himself up for this heartache. But he was only human. "Sure, Bella, just let me grab a coat."

Matt disappeared for less than a minute, and then he was outside with her. Bella watched him emerge from his house, and then she stared at her feet.

"So what are you doing here?" Matt broke the awkward silence. It was as good a way to start as any, even if he already knew the answer.

"I need to talk to you."

Matt waited.

"The thing is, I…" Bella swallowed. "I don't know how to start this conversation."

"Carlisle," Matt said.

Bella finally met his gaze, and they both had pain in their eyes.

"I kissed him last night. I didn't plan it; he didn't plan it. It just happened."

Matt closed his eyes. Fine. Whatever. He didn't like it, but it didn't change where things were going. "And then what, you two had a nice long make-out?" The words were out before he realized he was saying them.

"No!" Bella protested. "I haven't… I came to talk to you first."

"Bella," Matt sighed, regretting his slight outburst. "I'm sorry, that was harsh."

"You don't need to apologize to me." Bella was looking at her feet again.

"Bella… you…" He licked his lips. "You need to do what you feel is best. I can't stop you from that. I won't, because I want you to be happy."

"Matt. I honestly do love you. I… tried."

"You love him more."

"Yes." Bella felt as though she was going to cry again. She didn't want to do this to Matt, but there was no other choice.

"I've tried, too, Bella. Was there anything I could have done differently? No, wait." Matt put out his hand and shook his head when Bella's mouth dropped open. "Don't answer that."

Bella answered anyway. "You've done everything right, Matt. You've been amazing and wonderful. It's just…"

"Yeah," Matt said when Bella trailed off. "That one you don't need to finish." Matt let out a big sigh, and even though it was slow, his breath still hitched. "I hope Carlisle will make you the happiest you've ever been, Bella. Anything less, and I will gut him."

Bella let out a reluctant cough of laughter. The idea was absurd, but Bella appreciated the emotion behind it. "Thank you."

Matt said nothing. Really, there was nothing left to be said. Bella stepped forward to give him a hug, but hesitated. Matt, in turn, raised his hands to receive her, but also hesitated. Then he hugged her, sincerely and gently. Bella pulled back with a sad smile.

"Take care of yourself, Bella."

"You, too, Matt. And…" Bella started to say something else, but then changed her mind, regret and sadness in her eyes. Matt had the feeling he knew the two words she'd been about to use, and was glad she didn't, no matter how sincerely she may have meant them.

He stood watching as she walked away, got into her car. When she was gone, he kicked the snow, scattering flaky chunks across the edge of the cul-de-sac. "Merry fucking Christmas," he muttered to himself.

(~*~)

"Although it's been said, many times, many ways, Merry Christmas to you." Edward finished the note in time with the piano. Everyone clapped, even Rosalie, though Carlisle only joined in at the last. The distraction wasn't working. Carlisle was wearing a rut into the floor.

"Carlisle," Edward said rather than continuing on to a new song. "Sit down before I'm forced to pin you down myself."

"Ha! Like you could," Maggie laughed.

Edward frowned at Maggie. "Yes, I could."

"Sure, he could," Carlisle said absently. He'd stopped moving, but then didn't seem to know what to do with his hands. By his sides felt awkward, clasped behind him made him want to pace again, so he shoved them into his pockets.

"Carlisle," Esme came up behind him and ran her hands over his shoulders. "Calm down. Bella will be back soon."

Carlisle turned to look at Esme, and then he glanced around the room. Everyone was giving him patient to less-than-patient smiles. "Am I being that obvious?"

Esme laughed a little. "Everyone here knows and loves you well."

"And some of us have a distinct advantage," Edward added, looking at Alice and Jasper.

Carlisle didn't know what to think. It seemed his whole family had been aware of what was happening between himself and Bella even though he had not known it. Had Bella been aware? Had she seen that he'd been in love with her and tried to keep her distance? No, that didn't make sense with what had happened last night or this morning.

Edward played a few notes on the piano. There was a pause before he selected a new tune, "Go Tell It On the Mountain." Alice joined in on the singing.

With Esme at his side, Carlisle considered asking what she thought about the situation, changing the family dynamic with Bella. But he didn't want to know just now. It was tempting to ask the family what they thought about what was in his heart, but first Carlisle needed to know what was in Bella's, and where things would go from here. All he wanted was for Bella to return home so that he could talk with her. Could he even contain himself, knowing what he felt, remembering the way she'd felt in his arms this morning? Even then, they shouldn't have kissed again, but Carlisle would not have traded that moment for the world. He'd spent the day in pleasurable anticipation because of it, rather than in sadness and angst. There'd already been enough of that between himself and Bella the last few months, and now it was time to move on to something better. So much better. It was time to —

Carlisle's head turned when he heard the sound of a car coming up the long driveway. The engine was that of Bella's Toyota. "Go meet…" Maggie began, but Carlisle was already out the door, "…her."

Edward stopped playing. Alice had already stopped singing. "We've got a little time," she said calmly, but the gleam of anticipation was clear in her face.

Maggie got to her feet. "So what? Let's get started."

(~*~)

Carlisle was standing in the garage, waiting for her. His hands were shoved into his front pockets, and he looked nervous and adorable. Carlisle, waiting and nervous. It was unusual to see him that way, but it was still essentially Carlisle. Bella just wanted to kiss him all over.

She pulled up alongside him; he was standing by the passenger side of the hood when she parked the car. Bella wanted to check herself in the mirror, but there was no way she could do that in front of Carlisle. She hoped her hair wasn't all askew, or her clothes too frumpy. It struck her as silly to care – Carlisle had seen her at her frumpiest, first thing in the morning when she not only looked untidy but probably smelled unpleasant.

Bella wondered if she could find a way to discreetly breathe into her hand to check her breath. As if there was such a thing as discreet in front of a vampire. Taking a deep breath to steel her nerves, Bella got out of the car smoothing down her peacoat.

"I guess we need to talk, huh?"

"Bella, I…" Carlisle began then stopped. This was ridiculous. He'd been waiting all day for her return. Now that she was here, he was tongue-tied. "I don't know where to begin."

Bella didn't either. So she just blurted out the first stupid question to pop into her head. "Why did you kiss me?"

Dumb question. You know the answer to that already. It's the same answer as yours.

"Because I couldn't help myself." Bella stood in front of him, her body slim and taut, her hair in curls at her shoulders. She looked so lovely that he wondered how he had ever been able to help himself before. "Why did you kiss me this morning?"

Bella eased closer, drawn in. "Because I wanted to take away the sadness I heard in your voice." And to let you know… "I'm no longer seeing Matt."

Carlisle closed his eyes and swallowed. He let the emotion and promise in her voice surround him, as the enhanced tangibility of her sweet, delicious scent was already doing. He could sense her nearing, and everything he'd wanted for so long, what had been right before him for years, was almost within his grasp. "Why?" He needed Bella to speak the words.

"There's someone else I love more." It was easy to say, but Bella felt weak inside. Nerves of steel were actually nerves of gelatin. Yet she surged forward, putting her feelings out there. "Someone who has always been there, but I've been too blind to see it. Until he took me out in the snow and kissed me under the moonlight." Bella kept moving slowly closer, and she put her hand on his cheek. His eyes still closed, Carlisle immediately covered it with his own. "And I felt for the first time as though I had everything I ever wanted or could need. Carlisle, I…" Bella's voice finally trembled.

"Bella." Carlisle opened his eyes and Bella saw in them everything she felt inside. Love, hope, passion. Intensity and eagerness. "For as long as you want me, I am yours."

"I'll want you forever," she breathed.

Once again they moved as one into a kiss. Passion was there, but overridden by the joy of the moment. They broke apart and kissed again, laughing, a happy tear sliding down Bella's cheek. Carlisle kissed it away and held her close.

"I can't even begin to say when I started loving you. I've been so blind."

"No more so than me." Bella was still laughing. "I think I've wanted you since I was a teenager."

"I think I've wanted you since you were a teenager."

"I can't imagine you ever not being in my life."

"Same here."

"Are you going to just echo everything I say?"

"Oh, there's still plenty more to say, but at this moment we are both perfectly in sync."

"I'd say perfect just about covers it." Eyes shining, Bella gave him another kiss. It was slow and sweet, and their laughter abated in the tenderness of it. Carlisle eased back slowly.

"How about we go inside?" he said, and offered Bella his arm. Bella took it and leaned into him as they walked to the house. She couldn't believe how happy she felt. Her cheeks were beginning to hurt from smiling so much, but she just couldn't stop. She enjoyed the feel of Carlisle's shirt under her fingertips, his hard strength under the shirt. At his side was exactly where she belonged.

Carlisle and Bella walked in and were greeted with a loud cheer and applause. Every single member of the Cullen family was giving a standing ovation. There were even a few catcalls thrown in. The living room had been decorated for a party, and the most prominent addition was a banner hanging from the ceiling. In large block letters it read: FINALLY!

Bella laughed and blushed, burying her face for a moment against Carlisle's shoulder. Carlisle's hand came up and tightened over the one she had on his arm. She lifted her face to look up at him.

"Feel like celebrating?" he asked, a twinkle in his eye.

"Hell yes."

(~*~)

Alice was very pleased that the party was still going strong an hour later. Everyone was having fun being loud and raucous and teasing the guests of honor. The romantic union between Carlisle and Bella had been so long in coming. Alice was so happy that they were finally—

Alice blinked. Her eyes glazed over and her mouth fell slightly open. She blinked again and shook her head, but the images kept coming. With a small gasp, Alice closed her eyes. She gave another shake of her head in an attempt to dispel the montage of sensuality her ability was revealing to her. "Okay, I get the idea," she said under her breath and steeled her shoulders.

"Alice, are you…" Jasper said so that only she could hear but didn't finish. He could feel what was happening, the reaction in her body.

Alice looked at him, not completely focused yet clearly trying to break free of what she was seeing. "They're…" Alice's quiet whisper was a little breathy. "I've never had people I keep a close watch on become a new couple before. It's…" Alice blinked and shook her head again.

This time it worked. When Alice's eyes focused on his, something altogether different was clouding them. Lust encircling them, Jasper knew what would be coming next, and when she grabbed him for some privacy, he was more than willing.

Alice made a mental note to loosen the watch her vision had on Carlisle and Bella.