Chapter 21
Bella
"Alice, shouldn't we be there?" I asked. I didn't think it was a good idea to leave Rosalie. I was a little concerned for Charlie's safety. I know Rosalie wouldn't hurt him but when he tried to touch me Rosalie freaked out. It was rather hot watching Rose get all protective of me but I was too worried about Charlie to focus on that.
Alice handed me a bottle of water. "No," she said. "Rosalie is very... unstable at the moment. It's best to steer clear."
I frowned. "Rose said it was impossible to hurt your mate," I muttered.
"It is," Alice agreed. "But Rosalie isn't really thinking clearly right now and Charlie is a newborn. You could get hurt by accident, which is why we are here. Jasper would rather keep me away too."
"Why is Charlie so angry?" I asked.
Alice sighed as we sat down at the table. "It's hard to tell," she said. "I don't think he remembers talking to Rosalie. It sounds like he just knows we left, not that some of us came back. It's a good thing Edward isn't here... Charlie may have ripped him apart if he saw him."
"And why did Rosalie react so strongly?" I wondered.
"Bella there is a lot about our world that you don't know," Alice began. "Rosalie should be the one to tell you it."
"Alice," I said. I wanted answers. I didn't want to wait for Rosalie to calm down. There was no telling if she would give me the information I wanted. Then again she did answer my questions before.
"Alright, calm down," Alice said. "I will explain but it may take some time. I'm not an expert on mates." I nodded and got up to get some orange juice. "Now, I know Rosalie told you about how protective we are of our mates."
I stayed silent and simply waited. "The dominant vampire, typically the male, is a lot more protective when it comes to their mate," Alice continued. "There is an unspoken rule that a male is not allowed to touch a mated female without permission."
I furrowed my brow in confusion. That didn't seem right. "But Emmett, Carlisle, Edward... even Jasper touch you guys all the time," I mumbled.
Alice laughed lightly. "That's true," Alice agreed, refilling my cup. "But the difference is we are a family, not a coven. Also the guys have permission to touch us girls. Carlisle and Jasper know Emmett is no threat to their relationship. It's not much of a problem for mated males because they have no desire for any other female."
Alice saw my confused expression and continued. "Unmated vampires can have sex with whomever they want," I blushed but Alice ignored it, "but for mated vampires it's not that easy. They don't have any sexual attraction to anyone but their mate. For example, you and Jasper," she paused and rolled her eyes, "oh shush you two, it's just an example."
"I'm guessing Rose and Jasper aren't happy about that example?" I questioned.
Alice rolled her eyes again. "It's mostly Rose, Jazz understands the point I'm trying to make. Rose is just overreacting," Alice said. I heard Rosalie growling.
"Is it really a good idea to provoke her when she is like this? What are they even doing?" I wondered. It was far too quiet upstairs.
"She's fine," Alice assured me. "Right now Emmett and Peter are trying to keep her from attacking Charlie and Jazz and Char are trying to fill Charlie in on what he missed so he can understand what is going on. As I was saying, you and Jasper could try to have sex but Jasper wouldn't have any sexual attraction to you. It would be like a... well a gay man sleeping with a woman." Alice giggled and I stared at her in confusion. "Sorry, Jazzy doesn't like that comparison but you get the idea."
