The Forgotten Twin

Chapter 9

Rhea's POV

The aches never left, not even when Edward stopped the car. I slowly got out and walked into the house like I owned it. Carlisle, Esme, Rose, and Emmett were cooking in the kitchen. Rose set down the glass bowl containing a salad to give me a hug.

"Is your sister even Italian?" Rose asked guiding me to the kitchen island.

"Her name's Bella," Emmett quipped.

I rolled my eyes at his antics. "I think Renee has some Italian roots, I'm not sure though," I answered leaning on the countertop.

"I'm sure she'll love it no matter what," Carlisle commented.

"Phew, get a whiff of that. Here comes the human," Rose said.

Esme set down the cheese and walked around the island to greet Bella. "Bella, we're making Italiano for you and your sister."

"Oh," Bella said stunned.

"Bella, this is Esme. My mother for all intents purposes," Edward introduced.

"Bonjorno."

"Monto Belle," Esme replied.

"You and your sister have given us an excuse to use the kitchen," Carlisle said cutting up some chicken.

"I hope you're hungry."

"Yeah absolutely," Bella lied.

"She already ate... Rhea too," Edward interjected.

Crash! I jumped out of my own skin before looking at Rose. The bowl she was holding broke. "Perfect," Rose said annoyed.

"Yeah, it's just that, I know you don't eat so..." Bella tried to explain.

"Of course, that's very considerate of you," Esme said giving Rose a sharp look.

Edward muttered, "Just Ignore Rosalie. I do."

"Yeah, let's just pretend like this isn't dangerous for all of us," Rose continued her rant.

"I would never tell anybody anything," Bella said stumbling over her words.

Carlisle walked over to Esme and stood by her side. "She knows that," he said giving Rose a look.

"Yeah, well the problem is, you two have gone public now so," Emmet interjected from the other side of Rose.

"Emmett," Esme scolded.

"No, she should know," Rose demanded. "The entire family will be implicated if this ends badly."

"Badly, as in Rhea and I would become the meal," Bella said getting flustered.

All the vamps in the room let out a small chuckle. Even Rose cracked a smile. Alice, Ryan, and Jasper walked in from the living room patio. Alice gave Bella a hug while Ryan stood by Rose and Jasper come and took me into his arms. I relished in the cold his body brought me. I rested my head against his chest and the forming headache subsided an iota. I tried to tune out most of the rest of the conversation. Carlisle explained why Ryan was on edge as he was the newest to the veggie lifestyle. Jasper seemed so focused on me that he barely said hello.

Edward decided to take Bella on a tour, presumably to get away from his family. Ryan seemed to relax once Bella was far enough away. Esme told Rose to clean up her mess before asking if I was hungry. I slowly shook my head no while snuggling closer to Jasper. My eyes scrunched up in pain as a sharp twinge went through my head. Jasper, noticing my discomfort, slowly dragged us to his room.

I took notice of the addition of a bed. I gave him a questioning look and he told me that it was for me for when I stayed over. I thanked him, gave him a kiss on the cheek, and crawled under the silk covers. Jasper laid beside me but on top of the covers. I snuggled into his embrace and let my body succumb to sleep.

Jasper's POV

I was worried about Rhea. Carlisle told her to take it easy and here she is up and moving like it's nothing. I slowly crawled out from her embrace, planning to go talk to Carlisle. I gently moved my pillow into Rhea's arms and she let out a content sigh. I found Carlisle in his study as per usual.

"Carlisle, can we talk?" I asked knocking on his door.

"Of course," he said opening the door and inviting me in. "What seems to be the problem?"

"I'm concerned about Rhea. She shouldn't be moving just yet and still, she came here. I'm worried about her."

"It's true, the more she sleeps she gets the faster she will recover. I would try not to worry too much. After all, she is sleeping right now. The mate pull is a strong one and it can do any number of things. Keep an eye on her and if you notice anything problematic, let me know."

"Thank you, Carlisle." I made a motion to get up. I walked back to my room to keep an eye on Rhea.