Oh my! You folks are out for vengeance against Esme. There's more to come with her, but not yet. First we have to deal with Riley's meltdown and Sushmita's soul reading. Thank you all for your passionate reviews, messages, faves, and alerts. A ride in a Lotus with Riley driving for everyone!
This story is AU/OOC.
All characters belong to Stephanie Meyer. No copyright infringement intended.
Mature readers 18+ only.
Bella's POV
"Uh, Riley, I'm not so sure this is a good idea."
"Yes it is, Bella. We're in Vegas—what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. That's what the fucking commercial says, at least."
"Yeah, but Ry—you're going a hundred and twenty miles per hour on the highway in a fire engine red Lotus—the cops will be after you in no time." When I asked Riley where he wanted to go to blow off steam, he said Vegas. Why is it that whenever someone want to blow off steam they want to go to Vegas? Sheesh. This was my second time here this summer.
"We've got company, Bells!" I looked in the side mirror and saw the reflection of an undercover car with his blue lights flashing. I knew this was going to happen. Great. Just great. Jasper's gonna fli...
"Ry! Why aren't you pulling over?"
"I'm a fucking vampire, Bella. I can outrun this fucker." Oh, holy hell! We're gonna die!
"Pull over! Pull the fuck over now!" If I were human, my heart would be pounding. I looked behind me and more cops had joined in the chase. Pure terror was what I was feeling when my cell phone rang.
"Bella! Bella! Baby, is everything okay?"
"No, Jasper! Riley decided to not get pulled over for a speeding ticket and he's now going about a hundred and...oh fuck...he's going a hundred and seventy miles per hour on some deserted Nevada—nope California highway now."
"Tell the little shit to pull off at the fifth exit—he has to floor it until then." I heard Peter instruct Jasper.
"Did you hear that?"
"Yeah, I did. Ry did you hear that?"
"Yep, just passing the first exit." When we got to the fifth exit, Riley pulled off the highway. By then he had pretty much outrun all of the cops.
"Okay, we did it, now what?"
Jasper handed the phone off to Peter. "You two are going to take the keys, get out and run back to Las Vegas at top speed, then report the car stolen. The California Highway Patrol will find it in about seven minutes and impound it. It'll take you twenty minutes to run back. Now, get going."
"What the fuck, Riley? Why didn't you pull over?"
"Are you fucking with me? Do you know what a speeding ticket will do to my car insurance rate? It's bad enough that Connecticut has one of the highest insurance rates in the country."
"Why the fuck did you have to go so fast, then?"
"I was driving a fucking Lotus—I had to at least try it out to see how fast it went. Geez! You have no sense of adventure when it comes to cars, Bells."
"Hey, just cause I like to be a safe driver doesn't mean I have no sense of adventure. Daddy's probably turning over in his grave watching you!"
"He's probably proud that I had the dexterity to go that fast in a Lotus. I guarantee that if Daddy were alive he would have been cheering for me."
"No way, Daddy was all about abiding by the speed limit."
"That was only with you because you're such a bad driver."
"I am not! I'm just careful!"
"Are too!"
"The next time I visit Daddy at his grave, I'm telling on you!"
We were back at our hotel in no time. Riley called the police and reported our rental car stolen. The police came to the hotel, took a report and put out an APB immediately.
"I'm gonna go soak in the jacuzzi, then we can go walking around on the strip."
"Uh, that's fine, but you're still in your swim trunks and t-shirt, Ry." We had flown here with just the clothes on our back, flip flops on our feet, and my purse, thank God, because Riley's wallet was in Vicky's purse.
"Oh, yeah. Can you go pick something up for me to change into while I soak. I just need to think for a bit."
I gave Riley a hug. "I'll see if I can pick something up in the hotel. We're not going anywhere fancy are we?"
"Fuck no! I hate fancy just as much as you do. Besides, we're leaving tomorrow night. Just get enough to last us until then. Oh, and I need gel for my hair, some hairspray, a hairbrush, good shampoo and conditioner, and some deodorant. Make sure you get the hair stuff from the salon instead of that cheap shit and I like either Degree or Axe for my deodorant. No Old Spice or Right Guard—they stink."
"Ry! We're vampires, why the hell would we need deodorant?"
"Force of habit, just get one for me."
Geez! My brother is such a metrosexual. He says he's casual and all, but he has to work to achieve that look. He's also a fucking snob when it comes to hair products. Vicky and I used to always bitch about how much his hair products cost. He can't use stuff from the drugstore like the rest of us. Oddly, Rose was the same way.
I left our hotel suite and ran down to see what stores they had. I didn't feel like going to the Forum Shops. We were staying in the Hardwood Suite at the Palms Hotel, the one that comes with a basketball court. I swear to God, next time I come to Vegas, I'm picking the hotel. First I have to stay in some sort of kinky Playboy Suite, then I have to stay in some whacked out Barbie Suite, and now I'm staying in some fucked up room that looks like it's made for professional basketball players rather than for real people. I do like the pool table in the room though.
I stopped at the hotel beauty salon first and grabbed Riley's hair products—over a hundred bucks for shampoo, conditioner, hair gel, hair spray, and a brush. Ridiculous. Why can't he just use the stuff that comes complimentary in the bathroom like the rest of us?
Next, I asked the concierge where there was to shop in the hotel and it looked like I didn't have much of a choice. He told me that the biggest selection was at the Playboy Store so I ended up picking everything up there. Unbelievably, they had a full line of clothing from underwear to casual wear to dressier outfits. Of course, we'd be sporting the Playboy Bunny logo on everything for the next couple of days, but at least it met our needs. They even had his and hers Bunny logo duffle bags to throw everything into. I picked up a Playboy Bunny outfit and his and hers pajamas for me and Jasper plus a couple of t-shirts for when I got home because they were so cute.
Just as I cashed out, my cell phone rang. Jasper was on the line. "Hey, baby. How are you holding up?"
"Good, we're back at the hotel."
"Where are you staying at anyway?"
"Where else? The Palms."
"Baby, can you send me another video of you stripping for me?"
"Jasper, I'm with my brother and we're in some sort of fucked up suite with a basketball court. I am not sending you a nudie video."
"Babe, I'm horny."
"I'll be back tomorrow night. I have a sexy surprise for you," I said, thinking about the Bunny outfit.
"I can't wait. Hurry back."
"I will, I love you."
"I love you, too, Bella."
I ran back up to the hotel suite and handed Riley his bag full of clothes and his hair products. He took a quick shower and came out dressed in the outfit I got him.
"Bella! Really? A track suit? Why does everything have the Playboy logo on it?"
"Because I didn't have much of a choice. The only thing here was the Playboy Store."
"Oh well, I guess I'll have to walk around looking like I work in a sub shop in Brooklyn."
We left the hotel and walked around the Strip for a bit. After picking up a couple of Elvis t-shirts and fiddling around with a couple of slot machines—neither of us won anything; Riley and I made our way back to the hotel and decided to hang out by the pool.
"Okay, sis, shoot. Tell me how you think I fucked up?"
"Fine, do you really want to hear the truth? You were fine living in Boston in the apartment with just us, but you insisted upon moving in with the Cullens because you thought that Vicky and I needed parents to guide us. The thing is, Ry, we didn't need parents. For the most part, we could guide ourselves and if we needed advice we could turn to each other. Okay, so I still needed to be raised up a bit, but I had you, Vicky, Irina, and Laurent. I, for one, didn't need Esme or Carlisle really."
I paused a bit before speaking again. "Another thing, I know that you wanted Vicky to have a mother's love because she had years of adversity at the hands of Maria and James, but she had a great mom when she was human. That's something that she carried with her after her change and you could tell that she had a loving mother by the way she cares for you, for me, for everyone really. Esme is a good mother too. What she can't do is let go because her infant son was taken so tragically from her. She's afraid that if she let's anyone grow up, she'll be left alone. Historically, too, Esme was brought up during an era called 'La Belle Epoque'—it was a time of great social upheaval around the world: factories became modernized, World War I was fought, and women gained the right to vote. Still, in the case of women, they were still expected to subscribe to a certain social mode of conduct, if you will. The status of a woman was judged by the occupational and social standing of her husband and how well her kids turned out. I think that sort of thing has been ingrained in Esme's character and that's why she tries to hold on so hard to her family. A divorced woman would be considered the worst sort of woman in her time."
"How the fuck did you become so smart?"
"It's in the DNA."
"Oh, so we need to thank Peter?"
"Meh, it probably skipped a couple of generations. Maybe it came from his first wife—our great grandmother."
"Bella, you're right. You were the only one that didn't want to move in with the Cullens and now I see why. I don't know what to do. I wish we could go back to the way things were in Boston with just you, me, Vicky, Irina, and Laurent."
"Things were so much simpler then, I know, but I'm happy with Jasper, Riley."
"I know you are. You're all grown up now. I just need to unwind with my baby sister for a bit, then we can go back and face the storm."
"I feel bad for you, you live in storm central with Esme."
"Well, yeah, but you've got Carlisle three blocks away from you."
"He's no bother though. He's actually a lot of fun now that he and Esme are separated. He has a new attitude and a new lease on life. Last week, we took a Bartending For Fun class and next week we're taking a class on tie dying t-shirts. Emmett's coming along to that one. He claims he used to be a Dead Head."
"You know, Bella, I hate to admit it, but Carlisle and Esme are better off without each other. It's just that I don't know how they're going to stay apart with the mating bond keeping them together."
Oh, that's right, Riley doesn't know. I decided to tell him about their mating bond being severed. Riley was in shock, but unsurprised. "I'm glad it happened. I usually suggest to couples to work out their issues together, but in Esme and Carlisle's case, each one is unwilling to bend for the other. They're both too set in their ways. On top of that, I don't think Esme can get over Carlisle's infidelity. I think they should get a divorce.
"I do, too. Are you going to suggest it?"
"Nope, I'm staying out of this one. That sort of realization, they need to come to on their own—if they ever talk to each other again, that is. Let's keep this between us, Bells. We don't need the family going crazy and running interference."
We hung out by the pool then went back up to our hotel room. We played some basketball and some pool, then unwound by taking a dip in the jacuzzi. Before we knew it, it was time for us to go to the airport. As we were leaving, we received a call stating that the Lotus we abandoned was found in California and that it would be returned to the rental company after a criminal investigation. The rental car company wasn't charging us for the rental since we didn't really get to drive it and they felt terrible. Of course, I felt horribly guilty for deceiving them, but Riley told me to not take it too seriously because the alternative would have been worse. We probably would have landed in jail.
"Bella?"
"Yeah?"
"Thanks for listening to me this weekend. I really needed it. I love you, kiddo."
I love you, too, big brother."
Our plane landed at JFK and we went our separate ways with our mates.
"I'm horny."
"What kind of greeting is that?" I asked my mate.
"The direct kind." He pulled me into his arms and started kissing me.
"Get a fucking room!" Vicky yelled as she and Riley passed us on the way out to the garage.
We headed back to Manhattan where I was looking forward to jumping on my husband. Instead of pulling into our driveway, Jasper pulled up in front of the Plaza Hotel, grabbed my duffel bag, and handed the valet his keys. He checked us into a room and as soon as we set foot over the threshold, we were taking our clothes off at vampire speed.
My mate's eyes were a smoldering black as he ran his smooth tongue over my body. I was standing against the wall while Jasper was currently licking my folds at a rapid pace. I was moaning in complete ecstasy while his tongue hit every crevice of my pussy. Suddenly, he stopped and replaced his tongue with his fingers. His mouth and free hand hit my nipples while the fingers on his other hand brought me to ecstasy. By the time Jasper entered me I was begging him to fuck me. My mate obliged by thrusting straight into my pleading pussy. It didn't take long for me to reach my peak. I was screaming his name as Jasper released his seed deep inside of me.
After a while, Jasper smirked at me and said, "I'm still horny, Bella."
"Well, what the hell are you waiting for?"
We made love all night. Around seven am, we finally got our sated asses out of bed and headed for the shower. "Baby, I need a shirt. I sort of ripped my t-shirt off because I was in such a rush to make love to you. My jeans are okay, though."
"Today's your lucky day." I reached into my bag and pulled out two t-shirts. "You have a choice between 'Playboy Talent Scout' or the 'Elvis Presley I'm a Hunka, Hunka Burning Love' t-shirt. Oh, and this third one is from the manager of the Palms Hotel, it just says, 'Palm's Hotel'."
"Give me Elvis." I tossed Jasper the shirt. "What's that silky black thing in your bag?"
"Oh this?" I pulled out my Bunny costume. "This is the sexy surprise I told you about it."
"Put it on, Bella."
"Now?"
"Now." He ordered as his eyes darkened to the darkest shade of black yet. I threw my outfit on and modeled it for my mate. "Dance for me, Bella."
"Sit in that chair." Jasper obliged immediately. I swayed my hips and started dancing. Damn it! That evil instructor from the exotic dancing class was right, it is easier to dance in those super high stripper platforms. Oh well, I'll have to make-do with my bare feet. I slowly and sinuously made my way to my husband. I got down on my hands and knees and crawled to Jasper making sure I kept my eyes planted on his. He purred as I planted kisses from his ankle up to his chest, then straddled him so that I was facing him.
Jasper kissed me from my lips down to my navel as I arched my back. He slowly unzipped the back of the outfit so that it slid off of me, then brought me back up so that I was face to face with him. He kissed me on my lips again while I plunged down onto his rock hard cock. We kept our eyes open and focused on each other as we kept the rhythm going. I was soon nearing my peak and just as I was about to erupt, my mate exploded straight into my core. When he sunk his teeth into my neck to mark me, I finally came in one of the most powerful orgasms I'd ever had. As soon as he released his teeth, I couldn't help, but bite him. My entire body was still trembling when I finally detached myself and bathed the mark I gave him with my tongue.
"Shh...Bella...I've got you." Jasper carried me to the bed and we held each other as we snuggled underneath the covers. For some reason, each time I marked him, I would start shivering in some sort of an erotic frenzy. "I love you, baby. I love you so much."
"I love you, Jasper."
From a room on another floor, we heard a man speaking. "Holy shit. It's already 8am, we're going to be late for that business meeting."
"Oh my God! What's my fiance going to say! What the hell happened? One moment we were discussing the contract and the next thing you know we're fucking all night."
"You're fucking engaged?"
"Uh, yeah, didn't you notice the ring on my finger?" the woman screeched.
"Shit, I don't notice stuff like that. I just noticed your tits."
"This stays between us! I don't want anyone in the office finding out about us. It was a one night deal! Got it?"
"Hey, it's no skin off of my back. I don't have any problems with no strings attached. Now let's get to that meeting before we both get canned."
"Uh, Jasper, I think you were projecting."
"Trust me, she sounded uptight. It was the best lay of her life."
I rolled my eyes at my mate. We noticed that other couples around the hotel were still...um...otherwise engaged. We, suddenly, heard two familiar voices and stared at each other in shock.
"Oh, Kenny! I just love going to your cousin Brian's weddings with you. We always have the best sex afterwards. I think this was even better than that night nine years ago after we went to Brian's first wedding at the Seaport Hotel in Boston. What was the name of that girl he was married to?"
"You mean, Megan? She was nice, but I don't think they were meant to be together. She ended up marrying his friend Tommy."
"Tommy? Your ex?" Jasper mouthed.
"Wow! I can't picture him settled down at all." I had to break my ties with my human friends from college because I wasn't aging at all. I still kept in touch with them through Facebook, but at this point they thought we lived somewhere in the middle east where Jasper was an investment banker. It killed me to do so, but it was getting more difficult to keep up with the facade. They all had kids and led busy lives and we had less and less in common.
"Oh, Randy, I'm just happy that you and I are soulmates. We'll be together forever. I love you so much."
"I love you, too, Kenny."
"Aww...that was kind of sweet, babe. I'm gonna send them some lust and love so that they can make love again."
"Yeah, that was kind of romantic. You might as well spread the joy around the hotel. Why not let everyone have a great day."
"Okay, I'll do that while we bathe. Come on, baby."
It's time like these when I love the fact that my husband's an empath. He had the ability to make the whole world happy. We lazed around talking after our bath and we finally checked out of our hotel room around ten am.
"Oh my God! Could it be? Look, it's Major Junior!" Kenny and Randy came bounding up to us.
"Hi guys," Jasper greeted them.
"You never age, do you? You still look as young as ever," Randy said.
"It's in the genes."
"Did you get married?" Kenny asked, spotting our wedding rings. "Wait a minute? I remember you from Climax. You were a lesbian the last time I saw you."
"Uh, well, we both decided to go straight," I stated.
"Why would you want to do that?"
"Um, I enjoy having Major Junior inside of me."
"I can see your point, a dildo is okay, but nothing can take the place of a good, solid cock," Randy noted.
"Here, here!" I did a fist pump in agreement.
"Hey, did your friend Edward finally come out? I remember him, he was hot."
"Yep, still as gay as ever and loving it. I saw him two nights ago with his boyfriend Mike at the Eagle in Chelsea. You should go check it out—it's a great place to meet guys. Are you in Manhattan for a few more days?" Jasper asked, with a friendly smile.
"Yes, we're leaving on Wednesday. We'll go check out the Eagle tonight. Will you two be there?"
"Uh, no, we're leaving town today."
"Well, that's too bad. Oh! It was so good to see you." Kenny and Randy engulfed us both in hugs.
"I'll be sure to call Edward and Mike and tell them to stop by at the Eagle tonight," Jasper assured them.
The valet brought our Tahoe up and we climbed in for the short ride home. "What the fuck are you doing, Jasper? Why did you offer to set them up with Edward and Mike?"
"Hey, with the amount of eye-fucking they do to you, Bella, I owe those fuckers one. Besides, how often have we worked for free in their shop since we've gotten back?"
"Okay, you have a point. I just want to know how you plan on getting them in there."
"Easy. I'll tell them there's a hot stripper with big tits named Roxanne there. That should work." Jasper grinned. "Hey, how come you bought so many things with the Playboy Bunny logo on it?"
"Oh, that? I didn't feel like running to the Forum Shops so I went to the only store in the hotel that sold clothes—the Playboy Store."
"Is that why Riley was wearing a track suit with a giant bunny on the back of the jacket?"
"Yep, he owns two now—one in black and one in white. He'll blend when he goes mall shopping in New Jersey. That's what he gets for sending me out shopping."
Later that evening...
"Who the hell is knocking at your door at this time of night?" Emmett asked. "You girls stay here, we'll go answer it."
Jasper, Emmett, Amar, and Sahil went to answer the door. Edward and Mike were standing on the doorstep with angry frowns on their faces.
"You sent us to a gay bar!" Edward scowled angrily. The guys started howling in laughter. "When we tried to leave, that guy Kenny from Boston said that you, Major Junior, said we'd meet them there. We were obligated to hang out with them after that."
"Well, did you have fun?"
"They saw both of our wedding bands and wanted to know how long we'd been married. By the way, Jasper, they said they forgive you for going straight because Bella is pretty for a girl. Oh, and they said to thank you for sending a hottie like Mike their way."
"You were once a homosexual?" Amar asked Jasper, shocked.
Rose explained the whole Kenny and Randy situation to them. They started laughing.
"I can see why they thought you were a homosexual couple." Sahil told Edward and Mike.
"What? Where the hell do you get off saying that?" Mike asked, livid. The rest of us were rolling. Rosie was hanging on to me trying to get a hold of herself, but it wasn't happening.
"There's something decidedly feminine about the two of you."
"Feminine?" Mike and Edward asked simultaneously with aghast expressions on their faces.
"There's nothing feminine about us. We're men, solidly built, straight males!" Mike jutted his chest out as if that would make a difference.
"Yes, but I believe my mate is talking about your demeanor. There's something very girly about you both," Sushmita piped in.
"Damn it! I'm a guy, I have a dick! I..."
"We're not saying you're transvestites, you know. We're just saying that for men, you have a very feminine flavor," I said, supporting Sush's assessment.
"Bella, you used to think I was hot!" Edward cried.
"I was young and my mind was clouded then. Besides, my tastes have become more refined since then. You're still hot, just girly. You always were."
"That's it! We're proving to all of you that we're real men, damn it!" With that, Edward and Mike stormed out of the house. I wonder how they planned on proving their manliness to us.
8 am, Tuesday morning...
My cell phone was buzzing for the fifth time in a row. Who the fuck is disturbing my moment of ecstasy? I might as well answer it. "Hello?"
"Tell Jasper to get his face out from your pussy! We have a fucking emergency!"
"Alice?"
"Yes, it's Alice and...oh my God...why didn't you answer the fourth time I called...I'll hold the line while you cum."
"Huh? Oh...oh...oh...Jasperrrr!"
"Ugh, better?"
"Yeah, what's up, Alice?"
"First of all, please try to keep your shield up when you're fucking Jasper. I really don't need to see that shit. Now I have to go bleach my brain. Second of all, we need all hands on deck in Connecticut. Edward and Mike went to prove they were manly and got skunked. Idiots! Amanda has to go open her store in a couple of hours and I'm already at work. Vicky just ran to the store to get the de-skunking stuff, but someone has to run Newtons."
"Alright, we're heading there now. Rose took the day off from work and we were going to tour Mystic, Connecticut with our friends anyway."
"Thanks. It might be best if you and Rose ran to Newton's instead of coming to our house with the way Esme is acting. Amanda will have the keys. Maybe Sushmita and Amrita would want to take classes with Laurent while they wait for you. I saw the guys actually helping with the de-skunking. Oh, and stop in at Walmart so I can say goodbye to the guys. I know they're leaving for India tomorrow."
"Okay. I'm gonna get ready now."
"Great! Oh and Bella? Have Jasper teach Mike whatever he was doing to you." Alice hung up the phone with that final request.
"My dear, your ex-wife is asking you to teach her new husband the art of cunnilingus."
"That's so fucked up, Bella. You can't teach that. Tell them to go to some of Char's classes."
An hour later, the eight of us were in Connecticut. I made sure that our men were covered from head to toe in rain gear for the deskunking before driving to Newton's. Rose and I made sure that Sush and Amrita were dressed in exercise gear and ready to go at Laurent's gym then walked the few steps to the store.
"I've never done retail before, this is my first time ever," Rose said.
"I'll work the cash register. You just have to make the products sound like something they can't live without and sell them. It's almost September so there'll be a lot of last minute campers and we'll be selling a lot of cargo carriers for back to school. You'll have to install those because I don't know how."
"Easy, peasy. I can do those in a snap."
The first customers started trickling in and I noticed the men headed straight for a smiling Rose. By noon, she had made over twenty thousand dollars in sales just by smiling and saying the phrase, "I, personally, can't live without it."
See now, I could never be that fake even if it was to make a sale. My problem was, I'd always say something like, "Personally, I'd splurge on the backpack, but I'd go grab the mess kit at Walmart."
"Hey, cutie. Do you think you can help me out with these tents here?" Okay, I'm going to try channeling my inner Rose to make a big sale.
"I'll be right with you." Asshole. I hate creepy, rich men who think they're all that.
"I'm going camping with the guys and I need a tent. There are four of us, but we're all pretty big." Rose was listening and she rolled her eyes when she saw the guy motioning to himself with the word 'big'.
I threw a big, fake smile on my face. "Sir..."
"Call me Rich." It figures, the name fits.
"Rich, you've come to the right place. I'd recommend either the Mountain Hardwear Stronghold Tent or this North Face Two Meter Dome Tent. Both tents have an occupancy of eight to ten people so it should be more than ample space for a big man such as yourself."
"Well what's the price difference?"
"Well, the Mountain Hardwear tent is 3500 dollars whereas the North Face one is 5000 dollars. My sister over there," Rose smiled and waved demurely to the guy whose jaw dropped at the sight of her, "and I swear by the North Face Two Meter Dome Tent. It's slightly more expensive, but it's just that much better. We, personally, can't live without it. We even camped in the wilds of India's Darjeeling area in one of those."
"Well, since you girls seem so knowledgeable, I'll take one of those then. What else will I need?"
"Do you have a cargo carrier for your Escalade? I'm assuming that's yours."
"It is mine, do you like it? I can give you a ride if you like."
I looked over at Rose and she was pretending to gag on her two fingers. "You'll need a cargo carrier to store all of your gear, Rich. Trust me, you don't want to be cramped with four guys and their luggage in your SUV. A big guy like you needs his space. Rose can install a Thule Boxter for you. They're only a thousand dollars and they carry eighteen cubic feet of cargo." Jasper tried to buy one of those, but I told him where he can shove his thousand bucks. We rarely traveled with a lot of luggage so I saw no need for one.
"I'll take one of those, too."
"Rose, Rich here would like a Thule Boxter installed on his vehicle. Would you work on that while I help him figure out what else he needs?"
A few minutes and ten thousand dollars, later. I had Rich squared away with his high tech equipment including a GPS, a high tech sleeping bag, high tech cooking equipment, and even a hunting rifle just in case a bear comes rushing into the campground and he has to take it out. Rosalie helped him load everything up in his newly installed cargo carrier. The guy slipped us both his phone number plus tipped us a hundred bucks each.
Edward and Mike came trudging into the store, thoroughly scrubbed a few minutes later. "Thanks girls, did we sell anything? The guys are at Laurent's gym waiting for you."
"It's all there, I kept inventory for you," I stated.
Rose and I walked to Laurent's gym where we met up with everyone else. Sush and Amrita declared that Zumba is their new favorite class. We toured Mystic, Connecticut then stopped in to see Alice at Walmart on the way back. Our Indian friends went nuts in Walmart. They thought it was the coolest store they'd ever been in. How in heck they were going to get everything home was beyond me. It was bad enough that they had stripper poles and St. Andrew's Crosses to lug home.
Jasper and Emmett asked me and Rose if they could pick up St. Andrew's Crosses for our homes. We told them yes, but they could count on us leaving them strapped to them and not letting them down—ever. They gave up on that idea really quick.
The next evening...
We were at JFK Airport, seeing Sahil and Amar off. They had their mates in tight embraces. It was the first time they would be apart in four hundred years.
Amar approached Jasper with Sahil by his side. "We are trusting you with our mates. They are our lives. Please do everything to ensure their safety. They should have enough cash to last them along with their credit cards."
"Don't worry, my friend, I'll guard them both like I do Bella," my husband assured.
"I know you will."
"Make sure that psychotic woman isn't allowed access to them," Sahil added.
"Like I said, I don't want her near Bella or Rose anymore either. You don't have to worry about that at all."
Sahil and Amar had only seen Esme at her worst and they simply didn't like her. I didn't mind her, I knew she was going through a difficult time in her life and she wasn't in her right mind at all. Rose insists that I'm being too easy on her.
I hugged Amar and Sahil one last time. Amar kissed the top of my head and whispered that he loved me and to be good. He did the same with Rose. Amar and Sahil had grown to be like brothers to me and Rose. I knew that Jasper and Emmett felt the same way about them. They kissed and hugged their mates one last time and we watched them leave for the gates.
Amrita and Sushmita both clutched their chests. We assured them that it would get better. They wouldn't be seeing their mates until, at least, December. When we got home, Rose and I held them all night because we knew what it was like to miss our mates.
Jasper's POV
I felt horrible for them, I knew what it was like to be so far away from my mate, but in my heart I knew that Sush had to be trained. If not, any vampire with an agenda would use her gift for his or her own nefarious purposes. Bella understood this, too. She was trained from the time she was human because of her shield and Vicky, Riley, Irina, and Laurent were hellbent on keeping her as safe as possible because of it.
Eleazar, when he first encountered Bella, was angry that she hadn't been changed yet. Having spent years with the Volturi, he knew how valuable Bella's gift would be to a vampire with less than worthy purposes. He lectured Vicky, Irina, and Laurent for hours. Riley got a reprieve because he had no prior knowledge of our world. Then when I found out Bella was my mate, Eleazar told me to change her immediately. Of course, life took a tragic turn and Bella had to be changed, but still, I knew he was correct in saying that she had to be changed quickly.
Amrita was spending the day with Charlotte. She had the day off so she was looking forward to hanging out with them. It was already the beginning of December, Sush was working with Eleazar at our house while Bella and I were in school. Felix was in school with me, but he was doing way better than I was. I sucked at this course. I kept breaking shit. Now, whenever, I'd volunteer to do something, the professors would actually pretend they didn't see me or call on me whenever they needed someone to pass them tools.
Carlisle enrolled at Columbia with Bella. He went in as a freshman just like she was, only he was majoring in Pre-med. He decided that he enjoyed being a doctor, but wanted to take his time and start from the beginning so he could decide on a specialty this time. At least he seemed to be getting his head together. I knew he had called Esme, but she wasn't speaking to him because of his infidelity. Actually, Esme wasn't speaking to Rose, Bella, Irina, Laurent, Pete, or Eleazar either. As far as she was concerned, they were the enemy. Unfortunately for Esme, none of the six gave a shit whether she spoke to them or not. She could be as immature as she wanted to be, it didn't bother them one bit.
I walked into the house to see Sushmita, Gianna, and Rose working on Eleazar. Sushmita was teaching Gianna the art of threading. Poor Eleazar was acting as a guinea pig.
"Oh, good, Jasper you're home," Eleazar said, in relief. "Look ladies, he brought Felix with him. He hasn't had a turn yet with your fine art. Well, I must be going now. Felix sit with the girls. Jasper a word, please."
"I'll be right back," I said. Felix nodded to me that he'll keep an eye on things. I know it was ridiculous, but I did give Sahil and Amar my word that I'd guard their mates with my life and I meant it.
Eleazar and I went for a walk. "Sushmita has come very far. She is able to stay in control of her soul readings and distinctly filter out one's past and present so it leads to a distinct future. She can also see the path of a group of souls together. For example, if you and I were sitting in front of her, she woul be able to tell us where our souls would lead to in the future. I've taught her to tap into a person's essence, like I did with Demetri of the Volturi and Mike, so that she can envision a more accurate purpose for their soul. She can also see a person's future if it directly relates to their soul. In other words, she's not like Alice. Where Alice can tell you exactly what you're going to be wearing next Tuesday down to your underwear if you've decided on it, Sushmita cannot. What she can see, though, is not decision based so it is accurate. Also, Bella's shield has absolutely no effect on her because, like Peter and Char's gifts, it is inherent and cannot be physically or mentally shielded."
"What the heck is Peter's gift anyway? He keeps saying that he doesn't have one and that he just knows shit."
"Peter is a clairvoyant. He just has to admit it. Clairvoyants have a highly refined third eye or a sixth sense if you will. He can peg things to a 'T'—that's why we never bet against him. By the way, people say Bella is stubborn, but Peter is actually worse. How many years has he refused to admit that he has a gift?"
"You've got a point there. It probably runs in the family. Vicky's told me that Riley can be downright pigheaded when it comes to certain things."
"What we need to do before you return Sushmita to her mate is to have a soul reading session at your house where she tunes into everyone's souls. If she can keep it all together, then she can go home."
"Alright, we'll do it this weekend."
"Sounds good. Anything new on the Carlisle and Esme front?"
"Nope, Carlisle has tried talking to her, but she refuses to see or speak with him."
Eleazar sighed, "Maybe there's someone better out there for the two of them. I don't think Charlotte's aware that by seeing their bond break, it was a groundbreaking discovery for us vampires. We now know that a bond can be broken without manipulation from someone like Chelsea. I'm going home now. I don't know how much more hair can be threaded off of me. My chest is now completely bare and I'm in actual physical pain."
I walked for a bit before going home. When I finally got inside, Felix was being restrained by Charlotte, Rose, Sushmita, and Amrita while Gianna threaded his inner thigh hairs. "Major Whitlock! Help me! These women are viscious."
"Tell me about it, I went through the same thing yesterday."
"Why the hell do I have to get manscaped anyway, Gianna? You're the only one that sees it."
"Um, I hate to tell you this, bub, but we're all staring at your man parts right now and it's looking pretty hairy," Rose informed him. Felix rolled his eyes at her and yelped in pain again.
"Let's call Rex and Riley for tomorrow. They don't mind submitting to us so we can practice." Amrita suggested.
"Where's Bella?" I asked.
"It's Wednesday, she's at her Exotic Dancing class with Rex."
Oh, good, that means she can demonstrate her new moves to me later, in the bedroom. Maybe she'll throw her bunny suit on for me.
I decided to place some calls about the group soul reading. I didn't call Esme because Sushmita and Amrita simply didn't like her. Besides, I had promised their mates that the girls wouldn't have to see her again.
Saturday evening...
Sushmita was testing out her powers on us, everyone was gathered in our large living room in a circle around her as she read our souls. She had just finished reading most of our past souls and we were still in a daze from what Sush had revealed about our pasts. She was dead on target. She still hadn't read Carlisle, Felix, Gianna, Emmett, and Bella. She had her eyes closed and was deep in concentration. I wanted to send her some confidence, but we had all been forewarned by Eleazar to not use any of our gifts. Edward and Alice were having an especially hard time because Bella had dropped her shield for the evening.
"Carlisle you are a good man, your past was spent working for the greater good of mankind," Sushmita said. "The time has come for you to free your soul. The guilt you feel from giving this life to Esme, Edward, Rose, and Emmett is unfounded. They are at peace with who they are. You never felt guilt from giving Bella this life because you knew in your heart that she was meant to have it. The others are all content with who they are now. You must also free your soul from Esme. Your souls were meant to take separate paths. You must speak to her, ask for forgiveness, and if she does not give it to you—forgive yourself; the guilt you feel from changing her, from taking on children that you were unprepared to take responsibility for, for your infidelity is eating away at your soul. When you forgive yourself, you will finally set your soul free from the prison that you have incarcerated it in. It is critical that you do this for the greater good of all of us in this room."
Carlisle sat stunned.
Sushmita finally opened her eyes before she spoke, "Gianna, you had a happy childhood and were surrounded by loving parents and siblings. As a teenager and young adult, you had several boyfriends—each of whom you didn't feel a true connection with. That changed when you met Felix. He is your soulmate and you finally found true happiness with him."
"Esattamente."
"Felix, as we heard earlier, the rapes, the murders, the tortures you committed while you were in servitude to the Volturi had taken hold of your soul. Gianna helped you to release that by giving you the unconditional love that you enjoyed during your childhood. You were your parents pride and joy and they showered you with love and adulation, and gave you the tools to survive in the world. You were wealthy and well-educated and, most of all, happy until you were changed by an evil creature while you were fighting for your beliefs."
"Exactly."
"I believe that you, Amrita, Amar, Sahil, and I were all changed by the same venomous creature. This evil yellow haired vampire also desired Alice for his own personal gain and Victoria for his sexual gratification."
We all gasped. "Vicky, how old was James?" Carlisle asked.
"He was old, very old—I think he was first changed around 1603 during a famine in Ireland."
"That would be the Ulster Famine of 1602 and 1603. It was as a result of the Nine Years War between several clans in Ireland who fought against English rule," Bella explained.
"History freak," I whispered. I noticed both Carlisle and Eleazar beaming proudly at Bella for her factual knowledge of history.
Sushmita spoke after we all fell silent again. "We were all changed by the man you call James. His soul is no longer on this earth, though. The last person he tried to change was Bella, but her soul was meant for another."
"Wait a minute! James was trying to change Bella?" I asked.
"Yes, I can see the souls of those who are linked with us even though they are now deceased. James wanted Bella for himself. He lusted after her beauty and he was well aware of her great power as a shield. He knew that she could be easily manipulated at the time. What he didn't see was the soul link between you, Emmett, and Bella. Your souls recognized Bella's importance to your lives that's why you both destroyed him. To Jasper, of course, Bella is your eternal soulmate." Sushmita turned to Emmett. "To you, Emmett, Bella is your deceased sister's soul reborn. You witnessed her death as a young boy, did you not?"
Everyone stared at a sobbing Emmett in shock. Bella, Rose, and I were the only ones who knew the story of his sister. "Yes. She was beautiful, I was babysitting her for my mama and I couldn't protect her from that madman."
"Out of everyone in your family, did you not feel an instant connection with Bella from the moment you met her?"
"Yes and we got along from the moment we met. Bella and I used to meet in the woods behind the school just to hang out and talk when we were in high school. We didn't tell anyone in the family because...well...they were all pains in the asses. When we left her behind, my heart was crushed and I spent years looking for her. I never stopped looking for her. If I hadn't found her, I would still be searching for her."
"Of course you didn't. Your soul was already connected to hers and it was unable to rest until you found her."
"It's true, Emmett," Alice said. "If Riley and Victoria hadn't found her first, you would have brought Bella home with you and changed her yourself. It was one of the visions I had when I was...well, when I wasn't myself."
Emmett, who was sitting next to Bella on the other side, pulled her into his arms and simply held her. I don't think he was ever going to let go of her now. Well, he had to because I'm her mate and I really needed to fuck her tonight. I was extra horny. Hmm...she can twirl around her stripper pole naked then I'll fuck her as she's bent over and holding onto the pole. Edward heard my thoughts and started cracking up. "Horn toad," he mouthed.
"Edward, Jasper! Enough!" Eleazar chastised. "Emmett, let Bella go now, you can hold her later. Sushmita concentrate on Bella's essence. I sense you see something there."
Oh yeah, Bella's essence. I'll be enjoying that tonight. I think I'll use those handcuffs that Char gave me, blindfold her, and tongue her pussy for about an hour. I think I'll finger fuck her at the same time. Then, I can lick her juices off of my fingers. Yep, I decided that's exactly what I'm going to do to enjoy her essence.
Alice walked across from her seat and slapped me across the face. "Pervert!"
"Hahaha!" Edward was clutching his stomach and literally rolling on the floor.
"What in God's name is going on?" Eleazar asked.
"Jasper made a decision to...to...to...ugh...oh...God...to...um..."
"He decided to get really kinky with Bella tonight, something about licking her essence off of his fingers," Edward interjected with a smirk.
"What's wrong with that?" Tanya questioned. "If Rex's Stripper Wifey's essence tastes as good as it smells, then I don't see anything wrong with licking it off of his fingers. I'd like to taste her essence."
Bella now had her head buried in her hands. She was clearly mortified that her essence was at the center of attention.
"Well, he doesn't have to do those...those...things to her to get to her essence!" Alice pouted.
"What things?"
"He wants to blindfold her and restrain her with handcuffs."
"Hey, I thought you wanted her to twirl around her stripper pole, then bend her over and fuck her?" Edward asked.
"You two should really build a playroom," Kate recommended.
I grinned, "That's a great idea, Katie."
Bella stood up and looked at me. "No, no, no! We aren't building a playroom! Get that fucking thought right out of your head mister!"
"Well, gee. Can't a guy dream?"
"What is a playroom?" Amrita asked.
"It's a room filled with devices big and small to be used for fulfilling your sexual desires," Charlotte explained.
"Oh, so it's like my bedroom at home with Amar. I wonder if he's installed the St. Andrew's Cross and the mirrors. Will the sex swing I purchased go in there, too?"
"Yes, you should designate a special place for your vibrators, whips, floggers, and plugs too."
Bella and Rose were staring with their mouths agape at Amrita. She had become so open after spending nearly every morning and afternoon with Char at her school...er...shop...while we were in school and Sushmita was training. Amrita was receiving a completely different type of education with Char. Char had even printed out a report card complete with comments for Amar's perusal. Geez. Amar is either gonna kill me or kiss me when I bring his maharani back to him.
Eleazar started belting out instructions. "Okay, we're completely off topic now. Jasper, keep your amorous thoughts of Bella at bay for now. Sushmita, concentrate on Bella's essence. Not that essence, Rex! Bella go and sit directly in front of Sush. Michael, stop ogling Bella and Sushmita's bosoms! Edward, stop snapping shots of the girls' breasts with your iPhone!"
Sushmita held onto Bella's hands and started to concentrate. "Bella, your essence is very pure for the most part. It always has been from the time you were born. You toiled and labored so that your mother wouldn't suffer even though her soul was less than pure. You knew from a young age that although your mother loved you, she didn't desire you. Her soul was too selfish to allow you to live with your father who also had a very pure soul. Your soul endured much pain along the way including the departure of the Cullens, the deaths of your parents, Jasper's betrayal with the first demon, and, of course, the pain that you inflicted upon yourself when you drained the man that tried to hurt you when you were alone."
Everyone's eyes widened upon hearing that last line. This was Bella's darkest secret and it was just exposed and put out there for everyone to hear. Only a very select handful of us knew of what happened—mainly Peter, Rose, and Em.
"Bella, you must purge your soul and release the pain. The man you killed had the darkest of souls. If you had not rid the earth of him, he would have unleashed his violence on another. What if it were Rose or Amrita or me?"
Bella nodded her head with tears in her eyes. "It was when I ran to England. I was looking for a museum and became lost. The sun came out suddenly so I had to dive into a pub so I wouldn't sparkle—that's when it hit me that I hadn't fed in about two months. The thirst was overwhelming. I wanted blood, any kind of blood. I sat in the pub until it was twilight and I left immediately to find a place to hunt. A man followed me out of the pub, he had been watching me the whole time I was in the pub. He grabbed me by my hair and my shirt and tried to pull me into an alley to rape me, but of course he couldn't. He did manage to rip my shirt, though. I had already been fighting a losing battle with my bloodlust and between that and the anger I felt for this asshole, I lost it and I drained him. The guilt was overwhelming. I was so ashamed—so, so ashamed. That's the real reason why I didn't come home for two years." Bella ran straight for me and broke down in my arms.
I know I shouldn't have, but I tuned into everyone's emotions. Not one person, in the room was judging Bella. All I felt was love—love and a lot of concern for Bella's well-being. I held my mate and let her cry it out. She needed to do this.
"I'm sorry, Jasper, but this was necessary for her soul to move on," Sushmita said. I sent her a dose of reassurance so she knew that I understood.
A few minutes later, Bella finally regained her composure and sat firmly between Emmett and me with Rose right behind her with her arms firmly around her sister. Rose had her own cathartic moment about an hour before Bella when she finally told everyone what happened when she was raped and about the gruesome murders she committed afterwards. Again, no one judged her either. She was still a little horrified because Sush had told her that she would have a personal hurdle to climb soon, but if she relied on those she held closest to her heart—she would get through it.
Tonight, every single one of us purged our souls. Bella's was actually minor compared to mine or Felix's. Man! The atrocities he committed were ten times worse than mine, but still I couldn't judge him. I could never judge a man for doing what he had to do in order to survive.
Sushmita took a few deep breaths and continued at Eleazar's urging. "Your soul is the purest of souls, Bella, because you love all those around you and you have the ability to forgive. You understand that holding grudges and resentment chains you to a person's soul and that the only way for you to move on is to forgive that person. You've forgiven all those who've hurt you, but you must learn to forgive yourself as well. Your crime against humanity was committed because someone tried to hurt you. What you fail to understand is that if any of us witnessed the man attempt to rape you, we would have killed him in your place. By destroying him yourself, you've saved the soul of another. You've forgiven him for what he tried to do, now, the time has come for you to forgive yourself."
Bella nodded in acknowledgment and mouthed "thank you" to Sushmita.
"Bella, there is a demon with the blackest of souls from Jasper, Victoria, Peter, and Charlotte's past. She is coming. She is coming in the distant future—five or six years, I think. She is planning. She desires what once was hers and she will attempt to tear apart the bond that each and every one of us has. If you run from her, she will find you. You must not run, you must face her—otherwise, the alternative is death. This demon can and must be overcome for the greater good of humanity. Bella, you must keep your soul free and clear for, ultimately, you will be the one that saves us all."
"Me? Why me?"
"Your soul is the strongest and you are the only one with the will to pull us through. When the demon returns, she will be stronger than she ever was before; but she will not be expecting you. If you can eradicate this soul from our earth, all of our souls will dance into eternity forevermore."
Fuck me. Why Bella? Why does it have to be my mate? Why?
"Alice, do you see anything?" I asked.
"No, not yet. I don't see a thing. She hasn't made any decisions yet."
"Five years—you, me, and Vicky have five years before she comes for us. Sush is right, Bella is our only way out," Peter confirmed.
"Why isn't she coming for me?" Charlotte asked.
"She doesn't like you," Peter stated.
"Oh, well, that's good, I think."
"Every single person in this room has to be trained to fight. We need to train Amar and Sahil by taking turns to visit them in India, too. This is of utmost importance. Felix, Jasper, Vicky, Char, and I will be taking the lead in this. Our powers have to be working at high capacity. Maria's coming back and she'll be stronger than ever."
Sushmita added to Peter's statement, "We must completely be at peace with ourselves, our mates, and with our personal relationships with each other. I think most of you were able to purge your souls tonight, but now we must accept who we are and the paths are souls are meant to take. I've shared with you the personal hurdles you will face. I urge you to take my advice, be open, and rely on each other for support."
Eleazar, then spoke, "Charlotte, I believe it's time you shared what you have learned with your gift."
"My gift has evolved. I can now see who has what type of bond with whom and how strong it is. I can also see bonds tightening and loosening now. I witnessed, firsthand, the strongest of all bonds—the mating bond, weaken, then disappear."
"How can that be? Isn't the mating bond permanent?" Irina asked, worriedly.
"I thought so, too, but then I saw one bond in our family become weaker and weaker, then eventually erase until there was only a black void between the pair. I saw Emmett and Rose's bond becoming almost non-existent until they eventually made amends. When Amanda was first changed, there was only a small thread holding her and Edward together, but eventually it became stronger and stronger. The same was true with Mike and Alice. All of us have very solid bonds with our mates that I doubt will ever disappear."
"Whose bond was it that you saw break, then?" Carlisle questioned. I suspected he knew the answer already.
"Yours and Esme's." Carlisle had a look of relief on his face that I had never seen before. He seemed at peace with the revelation.
"I see. Thank you, Charlotte for informing me of this new development. Does Esme know?"
"No."
"What do I do now?" Carlisle asked Sushmita.
"You free your soul and Esme's and go your separate ways. You will eventually find a path that brings contentment to your soul."
After that, Sush ran into Eleazar's arms. He cuddled her together with Carmen. Char said that there was a strong parental-child bond there. Much like the one Carlisle had for Bella and Rose. Bella joked that she was destined to be the child of divorced parents.
Eleazar nodded to me and sent waves of peace and contentment throughout the room. It was like the end of an era. We each learned something about ourselves and poor Sushmita had it all bottled up inside of herself this entire time. Each one of us released whatever guilt and pain we had locked away within ourselves. Some big, some small, but each one had a significant hold on our souls. Who knew that our souls played such a significant role in our lives?
The session broke up and everyone went home. Sushmita and Amrita were spending the evening with Carmen and Eleazar. After everyone left, Bella and I went upstairs to our bedroom and talked about what was to come.
"I'm scared, Jasper."
"I am too, but we'll get through it, Bella. I promise."
I pulled her into my arms wishing she didn't have to face Maria, but knowing, at the same time, that if she didn't—it would mean doom for all of us. I wasn't stupid enough to bet against Sushmita and Peter and I was sure that, once Maria made a decision, Alice would be able to get a clearer picture of things to come. I was confident that, at least Bella and I would pull through. I had faith in her and faith in each other. The love we had for each other would carry us through whatever adversity we faced. I was sure of it.
I think Riley was able to clear his head in Las Vegas, don't you? Geez, he sure is high maintenance. So, what did you think of Sush's soul reading? It was pretty heavy and there were a couple of big revelations. It also revealed how dirty Jasper's mind really is, but I digress. Let me know what you thought of the chapter. You have my word that I'll respond. XOXO