Waiting For My Real Life To Begin
by Laura Spudzmom
Chapter 28
“We’re going to be leaving this place very soon…” she looked up and met dark eyes, taking careful note of the curiosity and alarm now swirling within them, “and I want you to come with us when we do.”
His breath rushed out and he took a seat in the chair adjacent to hers, staring at the floor for long moments before meeting her steady gaze again. “Where are we going?”
A cautious smile curved her lips and she reached out for his hand, her courage bolstered when his fingers laced with hers without hesitation. “I’m not sure yet, as it hasn’t been decided, but Charles, you need to know…this travel? It’s going to be…quite different,” she hedged, her tone guarded as she thought about how to broach the subject in such a way as to prevent him declaring her completely insane.
His dark brows knit. “You’re being vague.”
She released a nervous breath. “Could I prevail upon you to get me a shot of Mr. Damon’s bourbon?
He blinked, now beyond curious as one dark brow arched. “Of course,” he said as he released her hand and left the parlor.
“Oh lord, Emily, get yourself together…” she murmured, her hands twisting a lace kerchief in her lap while she awaited his return.
She’d dealt her cards last night after having another brief conversation with Damon the day before and she knew without doubt they’d be moving on soon, especially after Bella’s mate had come so close to death—a death that, according to his cards, was still looming over his life. She knew it had spooked the girl, and that she wouldn’t want to take such a chance again.
The only sticking point was the baby. Bella was torn with what to do with him. It was going to be the hardest decision the girl would ever make, and even though Emily knew what that decision would ultimately be, she would not interfere.
Charles walked back in with a tray which he set upon the table between them before resuming his seat. He poured a shot of the amber liquid and handed it to her before pouring one for himself. “Something tells me I may need this too,” he said wryly with a glance at her and she bit back an inelegant snort.
“You’re a wise man, Charles.”
He grunted and coughed at the burn as he swallowed. “That remains to be seen,” he quipped, his eyes watering and brow scrunched as he smirked at her.
She chuckled, shaking her head as she set the empty glass on the tray. “Well, I may as well hop right in then.”
He placed his own glass on the tray and eased back in his seat while eyeing her nervous form. “Miss Emily?” She peeked at him from under her lashes and he continued. “I’m going to speak plainly, and I hope it encourages you to do the same.”
She inclined her head. “All right,” she hedged and with a bracing breath in, he continued.
“I love you. Have for a while now and nothing’s gonna change that. I also want you to know that I see more than what folks in this house think I do, but…they’re good people. They’ve taken me in, especially Miss Bella. She treats me like family and she’s found a place in my heart.
“So, the strange things? The little things that just don’t add up? They don’t matter much to me. What matters is the love I feel for them and for you.” He reached out and took her hand. “I’d walk through fire for you, woman. Now, go on and tell me what you gotta tell me.”
She took a deep breath and let it out with a nod. “All right then. When they leave here, they’re gonna be traveling through…time.” She paused to glance at him and he remained silent, even as his brows rose. “I’m a…witch and I’ll be casting the spells to do it.” She glanced at him again and a slow grin curved his lips.
“My Momma used to practice the old ways. Many a time she kept us safe, and better yet, she kept us together. I truly believe it’s because of her that I’m a free man today.” He looked away shaking his head. “Now, she never did nothing so grand as jumping time, but I’m not ignorant. I know some of the old ways are powerful.” He looked back at her. “You must be powerful.”
She nodded. “My line always has been, and I reckon, since Miss Bella and her father are here, my line remains powerful in the future.”
His brows shot up. “They jumped back in time?”
She reached over and poured two more shots, handing him his and taking hers up before nodding. “They did.”
He tossed his drink back, wiping his lips on his sleeve before setting the glass down. “Why would they do such a thing?”
She pinned him with a narrowed gaze before deciding to simply lay it all out there. “Mr. Damon is not human and Miss Bella is only half.”
His dark eyes went wide, his mind working furiously at what he’d seen of them, what he now knew of her, and what they could be. “Impundulu,” he breathed, using the regional African term for vampire, and she burst out laughing, her hand eventually covering her mouth as mirth danced in her eyes.
“Lord, no! He is not my familiar, Charles, but how I would dearly love to see his face if he heard you say such a thing!” He frowned at her and she squeezed his hand in comfort as her laughter tapered into a chuckle.
“No, the many myths only come close to defining a true vampire. Damon belongs to no one and has very good control. Still, to a degree, you are right. He is a vampire and Bella is his half-human daughter.”
He poured another finger of bourbon and downed it before looking back at her. “Why did they need to come to this time?”
“For Mr. Jasper. He is Miss Bella’s soul mate and she knew him in the future because, during the war, he’d been turned into a very vicious type of vampire called a Cold One—very different to what Mr. Damon is. Because of those differences, Damon would not condone his only daughter mating with such a creature, so they came back to find him as a human. He will eventually be turned of course, though Bella has yet to talk to him about it, so I can’t say exactly when that will be. I expect it’ll be soon though, and when that happens, we have to be ready to leave.”
“Does Mr. Jasper know what they are?”
She nodded. “He does.”
He leaned down, his head resting in his hands as he slowly shook it. “Lord have mercy…” he muttered quietly as she patiently waited for him to process all she’d told him.
When the silence stretched past what her nerves could take, she spoke, her tone tentative. “Charles?”
He leaned back in the chair and blinked at her for a moment. “I meant what I said. I love you and I’ll follow you into the fires of hell if need be.”
She smiled and patted his hand where it rested on the chair arm. “It will hardly be that drastic.” A smirk quirked her lips. “It will be an adventure though.”
He stood and pulled her into his arms, one hand cupping her cheek as he searched her eyes. “Marry me, woman. If I’m really gonna do this—be a party to this—I need to know you’re mine.”
She arched a brow. “Well, I can hardly turn down such a romantic proposal…”
He grinned. “Is that a yes?”
She leaned up on her toes and kissed him. “It’s a yes.”
~o0o~
Bella hissed in pain as her little one bit her again during the course of nursing. “No Jace! No biting!” she scolded while sitting him up in her lap to lace up the front of her nightgown. He stuffed a chubby fist in his mouth to gnaw on and she sighed while running her fingers through his wild curls. “Looks like our days of nursing are over, little man.” She mopped the drool from his chin with a soft cloth and he grinned at her, showing off his tiny, pearl-white teeth.
“Ma-ma!”
With a quiet laugh, she lifted him and gave him a noisy kiss under his jaw, drawing a delighted giggle from him. “Yes, baby, I’m your Mama,” she said, her tone sad as she held him close, her face buried in his curls. “I love you so much…”
“Shall I bathe and dress him now for his visit with his grandmother and aunts, Mrs. Whitlock?
Bella placed one more kiss on his head before handing him to his nanny. “Yes please, Anne, and make sure Eliza gets the list of his favorite foods.”
Anne took the baby and nodded. “Yes Ma’am, I surely will.” She left for the washroom, and Bella quietly made her way back to the master bedroom.
She didn’t want to wake Jasper if he was still sleeping. After their initial greeting, he’d fallen into a deep sleep and had remained that way for the past twenty-four hours. The old doctor had looked in on him once since then, changing his dressing and assuring her that his state was completely normal for what he’d gone through.
He’d also been shocked at the rapid healing of Jasper’s wound, but there was little they could do about that. If the man got too suspicious, she’d just have her father use the ‘force’ on him. She giggled quietly at her own mental joke as she opened their bedroom door and slipped into the darkened room.
When her eyes adjusted, she gasped at the sight of the empty bed. “Jay?!”
“In here, sweetheart.”
She grasped at her chest and breathed a sigh of relief before opening the door to their washroom to see him lounging in a steaming bath.
He looked back at her and smiled while holding out a hand. “I couldn’t stand it anymore. Had to have a proper bath.” Mirth and something else danced in his eyes as he took in her gown-clad form. “Care to join me, Mrs. Whitlock?”
She took his hand and knelt by the tub, running her fingers through his clean, damp hair while placing a kiss on his scruffy jaw. “The doctor hasn’t given you leave to be out of bed yet.”
He grinned. “It’s just a bath, darlin’, but if you insist, I’ll let you escort me right back there when we’re through here—long as you come with me,” he added with a wickedly arched brow.
She studied him for a long moment—his honey-blond hair that was beginning to curl as it dried, those green eyes she’d lost herself to the first time she’d seen them, his cock-sure grin, and even the dusting of scruff on his strong jawline… He was perfect in her eyes and she leaned forward, no longer able to resist kissing him.
It started out slow and sweet, their lips meeting and moving together to take each other in until he buried a hand in her hair and pulled her even closer, his tongue demanding entrance to her sweet mouth as a low groan rumbled in his chest. She answered with a moan of her own as the kiss deepened. God, she had missed this…missed him…to the very depths of her soul.
With something very close to a growl, he reached over and lifted her into the tub and she gasped. “Jay! Don’t you dare! What about…”
He merely laughed and cut off any protests with another kiss as he perched her astride his lap in the steaming water, her white gown now soaked and clinging to her form as water sloshed over the edge of the tub.
His hands trailed up her thighs, pushing the wet material up with them as his hot, open-mouthed kisses trailed her jaw and neck. “This needs to go,” he murmured while peeling the gown from her body and over her head.
She shrugged out of it and he tossed it onto the floor with a wet slap before running his hands down her shoulders and arms, his eyes burning with lust and need as they took in her naked form. “God above, you’re beautiful,” he murmured as his hand slipped back into her hair to pull her into another heated kiss.
Her hands trailed over the flexing muscles of his shoulders and arms and a needy, keening sound left the back of her throat as his warm mouth closed over her sensitive nipple, his tongue swirling around the aroused peak as his hand fondled the other.
Pulling herself closer, she rocked her hips against his rigid cock, her ample slickness easing the way as she slid back and forth, picking up a rhythm that pulled another deep groan from him. “God, Bella, I need to be inside you…can’t wait anymore darlin’…”
As they shared another kiss, she reached down, grasped his cock and slid down on him, relishing the delicious stretching fullness as he slowly filled her. “God, I missed you,” she whispered as she stilled, her head resting on his shoulder as he grasped her hips.
“Missed you too, sweetheart,” he breathed while urging her to move with a slow, strong thrust of his hips, seating himself even deeper within her.
With a sensuous roll of her hips, she rose up and slid back down, drawing a hiss and moan from him as his hands slid back to cup and squeeze the rounded cheeks of her ass.
With a toss of her head, her pace quickened as she rode him, the cooling water of their shared bath sloshing over the rim of the tub as he met her rolling hips with powerful thrusts of his own.
“Isabella…” he groaned as he felt her tighten around him. “So damn good…”
Trailing one hand down between them, he circled her clit with his thumb, grunting as he slammed himself home again and again as she rose and fell, her lips parted and vivid blue eyes hooded as she came around his thrusting length.
“Jasper!” she cried, her fingers digging into the rolling muscles of his shoulders as she rode out her orgasm.
With three more deep thrusts, he stilled and filled her, reveling in the feel of her slick, inner walls pulsing around him as he pulled her close, panting into her hair as he tried to catch his breath.
After a moment, he huffed and chuckled. “Darlin’, I think you wore me out for the time being.”
She sat up and cupped his cheek, her eyes wide with concern as they roamed his features. “Oh god, Jay, are you okay? Should I send for the doctor? I knew we shouldn’t have…”
He shut her up by tugging her into another kiss before chuckling as their heads rested together. “I’m fine, sugar. Just a bit tired is all. No need for this alarm or course language,” he finished with a smirk.
Her eyes narrowed and she got out of the tub, wrapping herself in a towel before throwing her soaked gown in the laundry basket. “You stay right there. I’m gonna dress and change the linens on the bed and then you’re going right back into it.”
He dropped his head back on the edge of the tub and groaned. “Isabella…”
She turned and pointed. “No arguments. You still need rest. I’ll be back in a bit to help you.”
With a grimace at the uncomfortable pulling in his side, he rose from the tub and stepped out, wrapping a towel around his hips before stepping over to the mirror to lather up and shave.
When he was done, he walked into the bedroom, dropped the towel and began to dress. He got as far as slipping into his drawers when Bella finished up with the bed. “What are you doing?” she asked, hands on hips as she watched him reach into the clothes press for a shirt.
He cocked a brow. “Getting dressed.”
She hurried over, took the shirt from him and put it back in the press. “Oh no you’re not.” She turned to face him and pointed at the bed. “You’re going straight back to bed. You’re not well enough to be up and about yet.”
He smirked and reached into the press, grabbing the shirt she’d just put away while ignoring her irritated huff. “Nonsense, I’m just a little weak’s all. Otherwise I’m fine.”
“Jasper, you almost died!”
“But I didn’t,” he said while buttoning the shirt and reaching into the press for trousers. He stepped into them and tugged them up while tucking the shirt as she spluttered. He sighed while grabbing thick socks and boots. “Isabella, I have a mother, and she is quite enough. I do not need another,” he said with a pointed look and quirked brow before glancing down to don the footwear. When he’d finished, he grabbed her hand and tugged her toward him, cupping her cheek as she tried to avoid his gaze. She was on the verge of tears. What he’d said had hurt, but she was doing her best to keep from crying. “I love you sugar,” he murmured. “You’re my wife and Lord willin’ we’re gonna have a lotta years together, but if you insist on motherin’ me…well, that just ain’t gonna work, darlin’.”
Two fat tears slid down her cheeks as her chin quivered and he pulled her into his lap, hugging her close. “Aw hell, don’t cry baby-doll. I didn’t mean to hurt ya.”
Instead of making things better, his words choked her up even more and the sob she’d been fighting burst forth as she hid her face against his warm chest.
“Well, Whitlock, ya sure gone and done it now,” he grumbled as she sobbed. Rocking her, he kissed the crown of her head, whispering apologies all the while. When her crying jag finally tapered off to sniffles, he retrieved a handkerchief and gave it to her. “I’m so sorry, sugar…”
She cut him short with a shake of her head as she dried her eyes and wiped her nose. “No, it’s okay. You’re right. I shouldn’t treat you like that, so it’s my fault. It’s just…” she choked back a sob and he cursed himself under his breath as she wiped her eyes again and continued speaking. “I came so close to losing you forever…” She glanced up, her red-rimmed eyes meeting his. “I can’t lose you Jasper. It’d kill me.”
He pulled her close and kissed her hair. “Baby-doll, you won’t. Not if I can help it.”
She shook her head. “You can’t make such a promise, at least…” she raised her head, blue eyes meeting green, “At least not as you are now.”
His eyes widened then narrowed as he grasped her meaning. Still, he asked. “What are you saying, Isabella?”
She cupped his cheek and held his gaze. “I want you to turn for me, Jasper, become what my father is and I’ll…I’ll join you. I’ll have him turn me all the way…”
His brows drew into a frown. “What about our lives here? We have responsibilities, Isabella, a son to raise…”
She hung her head and sagged against him. “I know,” she murmured as fresh tears began to fall. “I’m just…so afraid for you!” She looked back up, her expression pleading, desperate. “Emily shared something with me, Jay, and it scared me.”
“What, sugar? What did she say,” he asked while drying her tears with his fingers.
“She said she looked at her cards for you specifically, and…” she sucked in a breath as more tears fell. “She said she saw death.”
With a scoff, he stood, setting her on her feet before pacing away, one hand raking through his chin-length hair as he stared out the window. “You don’t actually believe that hogwash, do you?” he demanded while turning to glare at her.
Her eyes widened and she blinked. “You don’t?! After knowing what my father and I did to get here, knowing what we are? You still doubt?”
His hands clenched and a muscle ticked in his jaw as his nostrils flared. “I’m not about to live my life based on some crazy woman and a deck of cards, Isabella, especially where my son is concerned! What you’re talking about, that would affect us all! We’d be bloodthirsty monsters! How would we then raise a child?”
She sucked in a breath, her face ashen. “What did you just say to me?”
He reached for her, instant remorse clear in his expression but she held up a hand. “No! Not one step closer, Jasper Whitlock. I love you, but right now, I want nothing to do with you.”
“Bella, sugar, please, I didn’t mean it. It was said in anger…”
Her chin quivered. “It’s not the first time you’ve voiced such a thing.” Back ram-rod straight, she turned and stepped toward the door but before she got to it, he had her wrapped in his arms, holding her tightly to his chest. She could’ve easily broken free, but couldn’t seem to find the heart to do it, especially as he kissed her neck and whispered apologies in her ear while holding her close.
“I wanna hate you right now, but I can’t,” she murmured, fresh tears soaking his clean shirt.
“I know, sugar, and I deserve it, but please, forgive me? God help me, but it seems like all I’ve done since wakin’ up is cause you pain. Hell, I should’a just gone back to bed when you told me to,” he grumbled, his worry doubling when she didn’t respond. “Please say you forgive me, Isabella.”
She took a deep, shuddering breath, letting it out slowly against his chest before nodding. “I’ll always forgive you, Jay. I love you too much not to.”
His arms tightened around her and he breathed a sigh of relief into the crook of her neck. “Thank you, sweetheart.”
She drew back to meet his gaze. “But…we have to talk about all this, like two rational adults, without you name calling, or either one of us losing control of our emotions, deal?”
He brushed a stray curl from her cheek and nodded. “Agreed.”
~o0o~
A coy smile curved blush-red lips as she balanced the tray in one hand while easing the door open with the other. Moving as soundlessly as possible, she crossed the room, her eyes eagerly taking in the sleeping form on the bed.
Earlier, before the sun had risen, she’d drawn the heavy drapes. She knew Damon well enough to know he hated waking to a bright room, especially after a night spent pursuing the more…carnal pleasures.
And if ever there was such a night, it was last night…
Her smile widened and she eased the laden tray onto the side table while glancing back at the absolute best lover she’d ever had, her eyes tracing the lithely muscled lines of his body, wishing the sheet that covered his hips would magically disappear.
He was beautiful…always had been, even as a human, but human Damon couldn’t hold a candle to this Damon in the sexual prowess department, and she found herself ever so thankful for following her instincts in coming here.
No longer able to resist, she eased herself onto the edge of the bed, one finger tracing the firm outline of a pectoral muscle, causing him to stir, his body shifting as he raised an arm above his head to grasp the pillow his head rested on. She leaned over, her breath tickling his ear as she murmured his name, “Damon…”
“Hmmm,” he groaned, his head turning as his eyes blinked open drowsily.
She grinned and placed a kiss on the scruffy edge of his jaw. “Would you like some breakfast, lover mine?”
He smirked. “Yours? When did this happen?”
She moved to straddle his waist, a matching smirk on her pouty lips as her nails lightly raked his chest. “Oh, you’re mine all right, and the sooner you realize it, the better.”
She leaned down, teasing his lips with light kisses and smiling in triumph as his arms circled her, pulling her in to deepen the contact as he flipped their positions, pinning her to the bed.
A low moan left her, swallowed by his kiss as he ground himself against her center. “Is this the breakfast you had in mind, lovely Katherine?” he teased while trailing open-mouthed kisses down the length of her neck as she wrapped long, silken legs over his hips.
“Yessss,” she groaned as deft fingers tweaked the eager peak of her right breast. “More,” she demanded as his lips closed over the other taut peak. “Please Damon, I need more…”
He drew back and grinned down at her, his eyes sparkling in a way she’d never seen before. “Who do you belong to, sweet Katherine?”
“What?” she asked, her brow creasing as she stared at him, eyes glazed and hooded with lust.
“I want to hear it, once and for all. You want something from me? Well, I want something from you, now, who do you belong to?” He rested his forehead against hers and her gaze softened as she cupped his cheek.
“You, Damon Salvatore,” she whispered. “I’ll always belong to you. I love you.”
He smiled. “Now, ask me again.”
She brushed his lips with a kiss, her thumb gently tracing the angle of his cheek. “All right… Please?”
His grin widened as his eyes lit with triumph and something else… Something unsettling that she couldn’t quite place, and it was then that she felt the sharp point of a stake pierce her heart. “Well, since you asked so nicely…” he drawled while giving the stake a final shove of good measure.
In her final moments, she stared at him, eyes wide in horrified confusion as he leaned down, whispering in her ear, “Oh, and Katherine, love? I’ll see you in hell, but not for a long, long time.”
A/N: The myth of the Impundulu:
This vamp hails from the Eastern Cape region of Africa. The impundulu is actually a witch’s servant, or rather, her familiar. It’s usually owned by a female witch and is later passed on to the witch’s daughter. This vampire had an insatiable love for blood and would feed on not only humans, but on cattle as well. The witch that controlled an impundulu had to make sure that it was always well fed, otherwise it would turn on her. Unlike other African vampires, which usually appeared in some monstrous form, the impundulu looked like a gorgeous young man, which is why some legends claim that the witch and her impundulu would become lovers.
“We’re going to be leaving this place very soon…” she looked up and met dark eyes, taking careful note of the curiosity and alarm now swirling within them, “and I want you to come with us when we do.”
His breath rushed out and he took a seat in the chair adjacent to hers, staring at the floor for long moments before meeting her steady gaze again. “Where are we going?”
A cautious smile curved her lips and she reached out for his hand, her courage bolstered when his fingers laced with hers without hesitation. “I’m not sure yet, as it hasn’t been decided, but Charles, you need to know…this travel? It’s going to be…quite different,” she hedged, her tone guarded as she thought about how to broach the subject in such a way as to prevent him declaring her completely insane.
His dark brows knit. “You’re being vague.”
She released a nervous breath. “Could I prevail upon you to get me a shot of Mr. Damon’s bourbon?
He blinked, now beyond curious as one dark brow arched. “Of course,” he said as he released her hand and left the parlor.
“Oh lord, Emily, get yourself together…” she murmured, her hands twisting a lace kerchief in her lap while she awaited his return.
She’d dealt her cards last night after having another brief conversation with Damon the day before and she knew without doubt they’d be moving on soon, especially after Bella’s mate had come so close to death—a death that, according to his cards, was still looming over his life. She knew it had spooked the girl, and that she wouldn’t want to take such a chance again.
The only sticking point was the baby. Bella was torn with what to do with him. It was going to be the hardest decision the girl would ever make, and even though Emily knew what that decision would ultimately be, she would not interfere.
Charles walked back in with a tray which he set upon the table between them before resuming his seat. He poured a shot of the amber liquid and handed it to her before pouring one for himself. “Something tells me I may need this too,” he said wryly with a glance at her and she bit back an inelegant snort.
“You’re a wise man, Charles.”
He grunted and coughed at the burn as he swallowed. “That remains to be seen,” he quipped, his eyes watering and brow scrunched as he smirked at her.
She chuckled, shaking her head as she set the empty glass on the tray. “Well, I may as well hop right in then.”
He placed his own glass on the tray and eased back in his seat while eyeing her nervous form. “Miss Emily?” She peeked at him from under her lashes and he continued. “I’m going to speak plainly, and I hope it encourages you to do the same.”
She inclined her head. “All right,” she hedged and with a bracing breath in, he continued.
“I love you. Have for a while now and nothing’s gonna change that. I also want you to know that I see more than what folks in this house think I do, but…they’re good people. They’ve taken me in, especially Miss Bella. She treats me like family and she’s found a place in my heart.
“So, the strange things? The little things that just don’t add up? They don’t matter much to me. What matters is the love I feel for them and for you.” He reached out and took her hand. “I’d walk through fire for you, woman. Now, go on and tell me what you gotta tell me.”
She took a deep breath and let it out with a nod. “All right then. When they leave here, they’re gonna be traveling through…time.” She paused to glance at him and he remained silent, even as his brows rose. “I’m a…witch and I’ll be casting the spells to do it.” She glanced at him again and a slow grin curved his lips.
“My Momma used to practice the old ways. Many a time she kept us safe, and better yet, she kept us together. I truly believe it’s because of her that I’m a free man today.” He looked away shaking his head. “Now, she never did nothing so grand as jumping time, but I’m not ignorant. I know some of the old ways are powerful.” He looked back at her. “You must be powerful.”
She nodded. “My line always has been, and I reckon, since Miss Bella and her father are here, my line remains powerful in the future.”
His brows shot up. “They jumped back in time?”
She reached over and poured two more shots, handing him his and taking hers up before nodding. “They did.”
He tossed his drink back, wiping his lips on his sleeve before setting the glass down. “Why would they do such a thing?”
She pinned him with a narrowed gaze before deciding to simply lay it all out there. “Mr. Damon is not human and Miss Bella is only half.”
His dark eyes went wide, his mind working furiously at what he’d seen of them, what he now knew of her, and what they could be. “Impundulu,” he breathed, using the regional African term for vampire, and she burst out laughing, her hand eventually covering her mouth as mirth danced in her eyes.
“Lord, no! He is not my familiar, Charles, but how I would dearly love to see his face if he heard you say such a thing!” He frowned at her and she squeezed his hand in comfort as her laughter tapered into a chuckle.
“No, the many myths only come close to defining a true vampire. Damon belongs to no one and has very good control. Still, to a degree, you are right. He is a vampire and Bella is his half-human daughter.”
He poured another finger of bourbon and downed it before looking back at her. “Why did they need to come to this time?”
“For Mr. Jasper. He is Miss Bella’s soul mate and she knew him in the future because, during the war, he’d been turned into a very vicious type of vampire called a Cold One—very different to what Mr. Damon is. Because of those differences, Damon would not condone his only daughter mating with such a creature, so they came back to find him as a human. He will eventually be turned of course, though Bella has yet to talk to him about it, so I can’t say exactly when that will be. I expect it’ll be soon though, and when that happens, we have to be ready to leave.”
“Does Mr. Jasper know what they are?”
She nodded. “He does.”
He leaned down, his head resting in his hands as he slowly shook it. “Lord have mercy…” he muttered quietly as she patiently waited for him to process all she’d told him.
When the silence stretched past what her nerves could take, she spoke, her tone tentative. “Charles?”
He leaned back in the chair and blinked at her for a moment. “I meant what I said. I love you and I’ll follow you into the fires of hell if need be.”
She smiled and patted his hand where it rested on the chair arm. “It will hardly be that drastic.” A smirk quirked her lips. “It will be an adventure though.”
He stood and pulled her into his arms, one hand cupping her cheek as he searched her eyes. “Marry me, woman. If I’m really gonna do this—be a party to this—I need to know you’re mine.”
She arched a brow. “Well, I can hardly turn down such a romantic proposal…”
He grinned. “Is that a yes?”
She leaned up on her toes and kissed him. “It’s a yes.”
~o0o~
Bella hissed in pain as her little one bit her again during the course of nursing. “No Jace! No biting!” she scolded while sitting him up in her lap to lace up the front of her nightgown. He stuffed a chubby fist in his mouth to gnaw on and she sighed while running her fingers through his wild curls. “Looks like our days of nursing are over, little man.” She mopped the drool from his chin with a soft cloth and he grinned at her, showing off his tiny, pearl-white teeth.
“Ma-ma!”
With a quiet laugh, she lifted him and gave him a noisy kiss under his jaw, drawing a delighted giggle from him. “Yes, baby, I’m your Mama,” she said, her tone sad as she held him close, her face buried in his curls. “I love you so much…”
“Shall I bathe and dress him now for his visit with his grandmother and aunts, Mrs. Whitlock?
Bella placed one more kiss on his head before handing him to his nanny. “Yes please, Anne, and make sure Eliza gets the list of his favorite foods.”
Anne took the baby and nodded. “Yes Ma’am, I surely will.” She left for the washroom, and Bella quietly made her way back to the master bedroom.
She didn’t want to wake Jasper if he was still sleeping. After their initial greeting, he’d fallen into a deep sleep and had remained that way for the past twenty-four hours. The old doctor had looked in on him once since then, changing his dressing and assuring her that his state was completely normal for what he’d gone through.
He’d also been shocked at the rapid healing of Jasper’s wound, but there was little they could do about that. If the man got too suspicious, she’d just have her father use the ‘force’ on him. She giggled quietly at her own mental joke as she opened their bedroom door and slipped into the darkened room.
When her eyes adjusted, she gasped at the sight of the empty bed. “Jay?!”
“In here, sweetheart.”
She grasped at her chest and breathed a sigh of relief before opening the door to their washroom to see him lounging in a steaming bath.
He looked back at her and smiled while holding out a hand. “I couldn’t stand it anymore. Had to have a proper bath.” Mirth and something else danced in his eyes as he took in her gown-clad form. “Care to join me, Mrs. Whitlock?”
She took his hand and knelt by the tub, running her fingers through his clean, damp hair while placing a kiss on his scruffy jaw. “The doctor hasn’t given you leave to be out of bed yet.”
He grinned. “It’s just a bath, darlin’, but if you insist, I’ll let you escort me right back there when we’re through here—long as you come with me,” he added with a wickedly arched brow.
She studied him for a long moment—his honey-blond hair that was beginning to curl as it dried, those green eyes she’d lost herself to the first time she’d seen them, his cock-sure grin, and even the dusting of scruff on his strong jawline… He was perfect in her eyes and she leaned forward, no longer able to resist kissing him.
It started out slow and sweet, their lips meeting and moving together to take each other in until he buried a hand in her hair and pulled her even closer, his tongue demanding entrance to her sweet mouth as a low groan rumbled in his chest. She answered with a moan of her own as the kiss deepened. God, she had missed this…missed him…to the very depths of her soul.
With something very close to a growl, he reached over and lifted her into the tub and she gasped. “Jay! Don’t you dare! What about…”
He merely laughed and cut off any protests with another kiss as he perched her astride his lap in the steaming water, her white gown now soaked and clinging to her form as water sloshed over the edge of the tub.
His hands trailed up her thighs, pushing the wet material up with them as his hot, open-mouthed kisses trailed her jaw and neck. “This needs to go,” he murmured while peeling the gown from her body and over her head.
She shrugged out of it and he tossed it onto the floor with a wet slap before running his hands down her shoulders and arms, his eyes burning with lust and need as they took in her naked form. “God above, you’re beautiful,” he murmured as his hand slipped back into her hair to pull her into another heated kiss.
Her hands trailed over the flexing muscles of his shoulders and arms and a needy, keening sound left the back of her throat as his warm mouth closed over her sensitive nipple, his tongue swirling around the aroused peak as his hand fondled the other.
Pulling herself closer, she rocked her hips against his rigid cock, her ample slickness easing the way as she slid back and forth, picking up a rhythm that pulled another deep groan from him. “God, Bella, I need to be inside you…can’t wait anymore darlin’…”
As they shared another kiss, she reached down, grasped his cock and slid down on him, relishing the delicious stretching fullness as he slowly filled her. “God, I missed you,” she whispered as she stilled, her head resting on his shoulder as he grasped her hips.
“Missed you too, sweetheart,” he breathed while urging her to move with a slow, strong thrust of his hips, seating himself even deeper within her.
With a sensuous roll of her hips, she rose up and slid back down, drawing a hiss and moan from him as his hands slid back to cup and squeeze the rounded cheeks of her ass.
With a toss of her head, her pace quickened as she rode him, the cooling water of their shared bath sloshing over the rim of the tub as he met her rolling hips with powerful thrusts of his own.
“Isabella…” he groaned as he felt her tighten around him. “So damn good…”
Trailing one hand down between them, he circled her clit with his thumb, grunting as he slammed himself home again and again as she rose and fell, her lips parted and vivid blue eyes hooded as she came around his thrusting length.
“Jasper!” she cried, her fingers digging into the rolling muscles of his shoulders as she rode out her orgasm.
With three more deep thrusts, he stilled and filled her, reveling in the feel of her slick, inner walls pulsing around him as he pulled her close, panting into her hair as he tried to catch his breath.
After a moment, he huffed and chuckled. “Darlin’, I think you wore me out for the time being.”
She sat up and cupped his cheek, her eyes wide with concern as they roamed his features. “Oh god, Jay, are you okay? Should I send for the doctor? I knew we shouldn’t have…”
He shut her up by tugging her into another kiss before chuckling as their heads rested together. “I’m fine, sugar. Just a bit tired is all. No need for this alarm or course language,” he finished with a smirk.
Her eyes narrowed and she got out of the tub, wrapping herself in a towel before throwing her soaked gown in the laundry basket. “You stay right there. I’m gonna dress and change the linens on the bed and then you’re going right back into it.”
He dropped his head back on the edge of the tub and groaned. “Isabella…”
She turned and pointed. “No arguments. You still need rest. I’ll be back in a bit to help you.”
With a grimace at the uncomfortable pulling in his side, he rose from the tub and stepped out, wrapping a towel around his hips before stepping over to the mirror to lather up and shave.
When he was done, he walked into the bedroom, dropped the towel and began to dress. He got as far as slipping into his drawers when Bella finished up with the bed. “What are you doing?” she asked, hands on hips as she watched him reach into the clothes press for a shirt.
He cocked a brow. “Getting dressed.”
She hurried over, took the shirt from him and put it back in the press. “Oh no you’re not.” She turned to face him and pointed at the bed. “You’re going straight back to bed. You’re not well enough to be up and about yet.”
He smirked and reached into the press, grabbing the shirt she’d just put away while ignoring her irritated huff. “Nonsense, I’m just a little weak’s all. Otherwise I’m fine.”
“Jasper, you almost died!”
“But I didn’t,” he said while buttoning the shirt and reaching into the press for trousers. He stepped into them and tugged them up while tucking the shirt as she spluttered. He sighed while grabbing thick socks and boots. “Isabella, I have a mother, and she is quite enough. I do not need another,” he said with a pointed look and quirked brow before glancing down to don the footwear. When he’d finished, he grabbed her hand and tugged her toward him, cupping her cheek as she tried to avoid his gaze. She was on the verge of tears. What he’d said had hurt, but she was doing her best to keep from crying. “I love you sugar,” he murmured. “You’re my wife and Lord willin’ we’re gonna have a lotta years together, but if you insist on motherin’ me…well, that just ain’t gonna work, darlin’.”
Two fat tears slid down her cheeks as her chin quivered and he pulled her into his lap, hugging her close. “Aw hell, don’t cry baby-doll. I didn’t mean to hurt ya.”
Instead of making things better, his words choked her up even more and the sob she’d been fighting burst forth as she hid her face against his warm chest.
“Well, Whitlock, ya sure gone and done it now,” he grumbled as she sobbed. Rocking her, he kissed the crown of her head, whispering apologies all the while. When her crying jag finally tapered off to sniffles, he retrieved a handkerchief and gave it to her. “I’m so sorry, sugar…”
She cut him short with a shake of her head as she dried her eyes and wiped her nose. “No, it’s okay. You’re right. I shouldn’t treat you like that, so it’s my fault. It’s just…” she choked back a sob and he cursed himself under his breath as she wiped her eyes again and continued speaking. “I came so close to losing you forever…” She glanced up, her red-rimmed eyes meeting his. “I can’t lose you Jasper. It’d kill me.”
He pulled her close and kissed her hair. “Baby-doll, you won’t. Not if I can help it.”
She shook her head. “You can’t make such a promise, at least…” she raised her head, blue eyes meeting green, “At least not as you are now.”
His eyes widened then narrowed as he grasped her meaning. Still, he asked. “What are you saying, Isabella?”
She cupped his cheek and held his gaze. “I want you to turn for me, Jasper, become what my father is and I’ll…I’ll join you. I’ll have him turn me all the way…”
His brows drew into a frown. “What about our lives here? We have responsibilities, Isabella, a son to raise…”
She hung her head and sagged against him. “I know,” she murmured as fresh tears began to fall. “I’m just…so afraid for you!” She looked back up, her expression pleading, desperate. “Emily shared something with me, Jay, and it scared me.”
“What, sugar? What did she say,” he asked while drying her tears with his fingers.
“She said she looked at her cards for you specifically, and…” she sucked in a breath as more tears fell. “She said she saw death.”
With a scoff, he stood, setting her on her feet before pacing away, one hand raking through his chin-length hair as he stared out the window. “You don’t actually believe that hogwash, do you?” he demanded while turning to glare at her.
Her eyes widened and she blinked. “You don’t?! After knowing what my father and I did to get here, knowing what we are? You still doubt?”
His hands clenched and a muscle ticked in his jaw as his nostrils flared. “I’m not about to live my life based on some crazy woman and a deck of cards, Isabella, especially where my son is concerned! What you’re talking about, that would affect us all! We’d be bloodthirsty monsters! How would we then raise a child?”
She sucked in a breath, her face ashen. “What did you just say to me?”
He reached for her, instant remorse clear in his expression but she held up a hand. “No! Not one step closer, Jasper Whitlock. I love you, but right now, I want nothing to do with you.”
“Bella, sugar, please, I didn’t mean it. It was said in anger…”
Her chin quivered. “It’s not the first time you’ve voiced such a thing.” Back ram-rod straight, she turned and stepped toward the door but before she got to it, he had her wrapped in his arms, holding her tightly to his chest. She could’ve easily broken free, but couldn’t seem to find the heart to do it, especially as he kissed her neck and whispered apologies in her ear while holding her close.
“I wanna hate you right now, but I can’t,” she murmured, fresh tears soaking his clean shirt.
“I know, sugar, and I deserve it, but please, forgive me? God help me, but it seems like all I’ve done since wakin’ up is cause you pain. Hell, I should’a just gone back to bed when you told me to,” he grumbled, his worry doubling when she didn’t respond. “Please say you forgive me, Isabella.”
She took a deep, shuddering breath, letting it out slowly against his chest before nodding. “I’ll always forgive you, Jay. I love you too much not to.”
His arms tightened around her and he breathed a sigh of relief into the crook of her neck. “Thank you, sweetheart.”
She drew back to meet his gaze. “But…we have to talk about all this, like two rational adults, without you name calling, or either one of us losing control of our emotions, deal?”
He brushed a stray curl from her cheek and nodded. “Agreed.”
~o0o~
A coy smile curved blush-red lips as she balanced the tray in one hand while easing the door open with the other. Moving as soundlessly as possible, she crossed the room, her eyes eagerly taking in the sleeping form on the bed.
Earlier, before the sun had risen, she’d drawn the heavy drapes. She knew Damon well enough to know he hated waking to a bright room, especially after a night spent pursuing the more…carnal pleasures.
And if ever there was such a night, it was last night…
Her smile widened and she eased the laden tray onto the side table while glancing back at the absolute best lover she’d ever had, her eyes tracing the lithely muscled lines of his body, wishing the sheet that covered his hips would magically disappear.
He was beautiful…always had been, even as a human, but human Damon couldn’t hold a candle to this Damon in the sexual prowess department, and she found herself ever so thankful for following her instincts in coming here.
No longer able to resist, she eased herself onto the edge of the bed, one finger tracing the firm outline of a pectoral muscle, causing him to stir, his body shifting as he raised an arm above his head to grasp the pillow his head rested on. She leaned over, her breath tickling his ear as she murmured his name, “Damon…”
“Hmmm,” he groaned, his head turning as his eyes blinked open drowsily.
She grinned and placed a kiss on the scruffy edge of his jaw. “Would you like some breakfast, lover mine?”
He smirked. “Yours? When did this happen?”
She moved to straddle his waist, a matching smirk on her pouty lips as her nails lightly raked his chest. “Oh, you’re mine all right, and the sooner you realize it, the better.”
She leaned down, teasing his lips with light kisses and smiling in triumph as his arms circled her, pulling her in to deepen the contact as he flipped their positions, pinning her to the bed.
A low moan left her, swallowed by his kiss as he ground himself against her center. “Is this the breakfast you had in mind, lovely Katherine?” he teased while trailing open-mouthed kisses down the length of her neck as she wrapped long, silken legs over his hips.
“Yessss,” she groaned as deft fingers tweaked the eager peak of her right breast. “More,” she demanded as his lips closed over the other taut peak. “Please Damon, I need more…”
He drew back and grinned down at her, his eyes sparkling in a way she’d never seen before. “Who do you belong to, sweet Katherine?”
“What?” she asked, her brow creasing as she stared at him, eyes glazed and hooded with lust.
“I want to hear it, once and for all. You want something from me? Well, I want something from you, now, who do you belong to?” He rested his forehead against hers and her gaze softened as she cupped his cheek.
“You, Damon Salvatore,” she whispered. “I’ll always belong to you. I love you.”
He smiled. “Now, ask me again.”
She brushed his lips with a kiss, her thumb gently tracing the angle of his cheek. “All right… Please?”
His grin widened as his eyes lit with triumph and something else… Something unsettling that she couldn’t quite place, and it was then that she felt the sharp point of a stake pierce her heart. “Well, since you asked so nicely…” he drawled while giving the stake a final shove of good measure.
In her final moments, she stared at him, eyes wide in horrified confusion as he leaned down, whispering in her ear, “Oh, and Katherine, love? I’ll see you in hell, but not for a long, long time.”
A/N: The myth of the Impundulu:
This vamp hails from the Eastern Cape region of Africa. The impundulu is actually a witch’s servant, or rather, her familiar. It’s usually owned by a female witch and is later passed on to the witch’s daughter. This vampire had an insatiable love for blood and would feed on not only humans, but on cattle as well. The witch that controlled an impundulu had to make sure that it was always well fed, otherwise it would turn on her. Unlike other African vampires, which usually appeared in some monstrous form, the impundulu looked like a gorgeous young man, which is why some legends claim that the witch and her impundulu would become lovers.
DISCLAIMER: Twilight and its inclusive material is copyright to Stephenie Meyer. Original creation, including but not limited to plot and characters, is copyright to the respective authors of each story. No copyright infringement is intended.