Disclaimer: Stephanie Meyer owns it all.
Rated M for several reasons.
Chpt 6 Fishy
This is one of my favourite ways to just be.
Several orgasms down, curled up on my side with Jasper spooning behind me, his body folded around mine as he moves gently inside me, the only sound our soft moans an' the whisper of his lips on my skin.
From time to time his fingers reach up to brush my nipples or down to stroke my folds an' I gasp an' push back against him, making him groan. But there is no urgency, no requirement to take it any further. We are content to just be together, hovering contentedly on the edge of the passion that often overtakes us. It's like being asleep an' having the best dream in the world.
As soon as dawn breaks we will be parting for a few days, not something I am looking forward to. Jasper an' most of the others are moving into our new home, some of the Guard are heading out across the country to retrieve our scattered possessions and Simon an' I are going to Washington for the overdue meeting with Evans.
Feeling my thoughts turn melancholy Jasper pulls me closer.
"It's only for a few days darlin'." He whispers.
"I know, but I'll miss you."
"Of course you will darlin'." He chuckles. "No woman in her right mind would leave a fine specimen like me alone so soon after marryin' him."
He eases a little deeper into me to emphasise his point.
"You have a very high opinion of yourself Major Whitlock." I growl playfully, pushing back an' moaning as he slides further inside.
"Sorry, I used to be a lot more modest but my mate keeps tellin' me how great I am in the sack." He drawls, nipping at my ear lobe, tweaking my nipple an' gliding his finger over my clit.
"Are you getting' a swollen head?" I gasp.
"I'm getting' a swollen somethin' darlin'." He growls, using his body to push me, face down, into the bed.
Several hours later I emerge into the weak early morning sunshine to find the house an' yard a hive of activity an' Simon perched mournfully on the hood of my shiny new Prius.
"You are very cruel Mistress." He grumbles.
"Ah, come on now Simon." I scold him lightly. "We're gonna live forever, gotta take care of the environment."
I throw my bag in the trunk an' settle myself into the passenger seat.
"You are going to make me drive it?" He asks in a strangled voice.
"Yes Simon." I tell him haughtily. "Every day of forever until you start callin' me Bella."
Rolling his eyes he climbs into the driver's seat an' we set off for Washington in companionable silence, arriving after rush hour and parking easily near the secret service field office.
"Ma'am." Evans greets me warmly, showing no reluctance now to shake my hand.
"Evans." I smile. "This is Simon, my bodyguard."
"Simon." Evans offers his hand.
Simon shakes it briefly, looking distinctly chilly. Evans shivers.
"Will you lighten up?" I snap at him in vampire speed as we follow Evans to his office.
"Mistress." He answers calmly. "Bodyguards are not supposed to be friendly."
"I don't need a bodyguard here." I remind him.
"I realise that Mistress." He responds. "But this is all about appearances. You are important enough to warrant a bodyguard and that is a powerful message to send. Think about it."
Evans, who is used to this sort of thing by now, waits patiently for our lips to stop moving.
"Sorry Evans, private conversation."
His lips curve into a smile as I take a seat an' Simon stands behind me.
We spend a few hours discussing our agreement an' refining a few points. Mainly that we will not, in anyway, become involved in human affairs. If they have a human problem they must solve it themselves. As expected they have absolutely no intention of ever making the existence of vampires public, even with the footage who would ever believe it? As we suspected our threat to Aro was empty all along. The meeting closes with us agreeing a protocol for contacting each other an' Evans congratulating me on my new ring.
We say our goodbyes an' I resist the impulse to give him a little hug. I am grateful that he helped me get my family back an' don't want to spoil it by accidently breaking his ribs.
"Shopping Mistress?" Simon asks as we get back in the car.
"I don't need anythin'." I tell him honestly.
"That." He says heavily. "Is not the point."
"Alright smartass. What do you think I need?"
"Oh Mistress." He sighs, eying my jeans an' t-shirt with comical distaste. "In my opinion you need many, many, things. But perhaps we should start with a gown for the Reception? I do not believe there will be much opportunity to get something suitable in the social Siberia to which My Lady Charlotte is exiling us."
"Not a country boy?" I giggle.
"Never." He shudders.
"Okay Simon, lets shop."
He rewards me with a huge smile which disappears instantly as he starts the car.
I giggle again. I give him until we get to our new home before he caves an' starts calling me Bella.
Ever since my change I've had little interest in clothes, opting mostly for jeans an' t-shirts. As soon as we hit Washington's best shopping district I realise how much I've missed my old wardrobe. We've moved around so much, often suddenly, that I've ended up buying only the simplest things whenever the need has arisen. With a pang I remember my beloved leather jacket, my crimson dress, and my boots. God I miss those boots.
"Ready?" Simon asks, withdrawing a slim black credit card from the breast pocket of his extremely sharp, handmade Italian suit.
"Give it." I snap, grabbing it from his fingers an' stalking into the first shop.
Smirking he settles his shades over his red eyes an' takes up station two steps behind me.
Shopping with a bodyguard is a strange experience on many levels. Firstly, everyone stares at us anyway, we're vampires an' we're gorgeous. An' you really don't need to be a mind reader to guess that everyone is wondering who I am, who is so important that they have such a serious looking bodyguard following their every move.
In professional capacity, bodyguards have to keep their hands free apparently, Simon refuses to carry my bags but he does cast an expert eye over everything I try on, offering his opinions at vampire speed so as not to break the spell.
It's a fun, almost normal day.
"See, I can shop." I tell Simon airily as we move onto the next store.
"Mistress." He says with heavy sarcasm. "Fifteen hundred dollars is not shopping, it is 'picking something up' on the way home."
"Oh." Way to deflate a girl.
"Never mind. Let us see if we can do better with your gown."
Apparently five thousand dollars for one dress is also a poor show. However he did agree that the style an' color suited me perfectly.
"I can't see the Master lasting beyond ten minutes with you in that dress Mistress. I will have to put some money on."
"You bet on how long it takes Jasper an' I to get distracted?" I gasp, mortified.
"I would not call it distracted Mistress, but yes we do. The Guard will bet on anything an' your sex life is extremely gratifying for us in a number of ways."
Ew. Its one thing to know everyone knows what you're doing all the time but it's another thing entirely for someone to actually come out an' say it.
"You are embarrassed?" He's trying hard not to smirk.
"Of course I'm embarrassed!"
"So you will not sleep with the Master again?" He asks seriously.
"Now that is ridiculous!" I snort.
"So why waste time being embarrassed?"
"Because." I scout around my startled brain for the words to explain. "Well, because that's how any normal person would feel."
"You are not a normal person Mistress. You are a vampire. You live in a large coven. You are mated to an extremely attractive man and you love each other. How else would anyone expect you to act?"
"That either makes a lot of sense or you're a massive pervert." I huff.
"A little of both Mistress." He winks an' I laugh.
"Regardless Simon you will tell the Guard that if I catch 'em making bets about Jasper an' me I'll be makin' little piles of rock dust out of the culprits."
"Of course Mistress, I will tell My Lord Peter as soon as we get home."
"Do you know what 'shit stirring' is Simon?" I ask, struggling to hold in my laughter.
"Of course Mistress." He winks again. "You should see the size of my spoon."
We're still laughing as we cross the now dark an' deserted parking lot back to the car.
Suddenly we both stop moving.
Vampire scents. Four. Unknown.
"Mistress." Simon whispers urgently. "Let me deal with this."
I nod.
We stand, waiting, an' after a few moments two vampires emerge from the shadows approaching us slowly but confidently. They are a mismatched pair, one wearing a business suit an' the other dressed as a reject from a biker gang. They look like trouble.
Silently Simon hands me the garment bag he finally agreed to carry an' his demeanour changes completely. He no longer looks nondescript or like a naughty child. He looks supremely dangerous an' there is an almost eerie intensity and alertness about him.
"What coven are you from?" The biker asks as soon as they are within striking distance.
"The Whitlock Coven." Simon answers simply.
"Never heard of it." Biker snorts. "What are you doing in our territory?"
"Shopping." Simon replies. "We did not realise this territory was claimed, we noticed no marking."
"Well it is buddy." Biker snarls. "And we're not real big on sharing."
This is interesting. These are either the world's most unobservant vampires or there's something fishy going on.
"We apologise." Simon says politely. "The last time we were here we encountered no other vampires. We have no intention of hunting here. We were just leaving."
"She's marked." Biker jerks his head at me. "But not yours I think."
"She is The Major's Mate." Simon's voice is icy. "You should treat her with more respect."
"We don't care whose mate she is. We're a little short on females in our coven, she'll make a nice addition. Don't you think so Jared?"
"Lovely." The suited one responds, leering at me.
Behind me I hear two more vamps approaching. Carefully I put my bags down an' turn to face them.
More poorly dressed bikers. Like the other two they bear a few scars but otherwise don't look like anything we can't handle.
Abruptly Biker charges Simon an' almost gets hold of him. Simon is astonishingly fast so Biker's hands close around thin air an' before he can crash to the floor he is practically broken in half across Simon's extended thigh.
The three other vampires descend on Simon howling with rage.
He doesn't break a smile, which even frightens me a little as I'm used to Jasper an' Pete grimly enjoying a good fight. Simon is deadly serious.
The charging three land on him together, like something out of a cartoon Simon sinks to a crouch beneath them before suddenly exploding upwards an' flinging them in all directions. One of the tumbling bodies knocks me flat on my back, which is what you get for attempting to fight fair an' not use your shield.
Without sparing me a backward glance he leaps to his feet an' towards Simon again. Which is an unfortunate choice, because I decapitate him easily before he's taken a second step.
"I hate parking lots." I growl to no one in particular.
Realising I am not just part of the scenery Jared breaks away from the attack on Simon an' stalks towards me with a twisted leer on his face.
"You really don't want to do that." I tell him sternly.
"Who are you to tell me what I wanna do little lady?" He taunts, puffing out his chest.
"The Mistress is merely trying to warn you that I have finished with your friends." Simon whispers in his ear.
Jared begins to turn but Simon merely lifts the weakly struggling bodies he has grasped in each hand an' uses them to crush Jared's head with a thundering boom. Quickly he drops his strange baggage an' looks down.
"I have ruined the knee of my trousers Mistress." He says sadly.