Bonded

Chapter 14

"What do you think?"

"I think you're insane."

Bianca laughed as she twirled around in the mirror one more time. She was trying on a little red bra and panty set, complete with stockings and a pair of stilettos she brought from home. The lace of the bra settled quite comfy on her chest. She turned in the mirror to look at her damn near perfect ass in the lace cheekies and nodded in pure satisfaction with herself. I watched her put her hands on her hips, her cheerleader abs flexing and relaxing as she breathed. "I think it's cute!" She shrugged. "But should I do this one or the black?" Bianca started muttering to herself as she held up the identical black set to examine.

"Are you trying to kill him, B?" I smirked, crossing my legs. Kaya had told me to go ahead and enjoy my day since Jacob would be out of commission for a bit. I sat and watched a couple of episodes of Vanderpump Rules with her before inviting Bianca to go shopping. So, we were out shopping. Not panicking. We're chilling, you know? Not panicking.

Kaya scoffed at the television and rolled her eyes. "I can't believe Scheana would say that," she shook her head as she adjusted herself on the couch. I was trying to focus on the TV, but I couldn't help but keep stealing glances at the staircase. Jacob had disappeared upstairs 20 minutes ago, and other than the occasional 'this is stupid' projection, it was completely still up there. "I feel like she's way too dramatic about all of it, you know?"

"Mm-hmm..." I mumbled, focusing my energy on Jacob's. He was just very Zen right now, but I couldn't hear him.

"Leah?" Kaya waved her hand in front of my face. "You're wasting your time. He's going to be up there for a while."

I took a deep breath. "You're right. I'm sorry. So, what did Scheana say?"

Kaya scoot closer to me and started explaining the whole dynamic of Stassi and Scheana to me, playing with my hair as if this was just something we did on a regular Saturday. I knew she was trying to distract me with nonsensical chatter about the early seasons of Vanderpump Rules and girl talk. I zoned out a little while she was talking, watching her face closely. Her eyes always had a happy and playful nature to them...but when I looked past that, I could tell she was tired and concerned.

It would have been too easy for our ancestors to just have all of the answers. It would have been too easy for them to tell us what's coming. I hated the idea that I was the one that was stressing her out. If I had just let myself relax, Kaya wouldn't have had to come back. On the contrary...I felt so comfortable with her here. I loved her pres—

A loud thud came from upstairs and I, all of a sudden, felt very empty. I couldn't feel him. My head snapped towards the stairs and, before I even knew it, I was rushing toward the stairs.

"Ah, ah, ah!" Kaya called from the couch. "Sit down."

"What?! No! Didn't you hear that?! Something's wrong!" I said, panicking.

She rolled her eyes at me and smiled. "He is fine, little one. I promise."

"But, I can't—"

"I know you can't feel him. That's just part of the process. Jacob is having a special visit right now. He's ok. Come sit."

I snapped back into focus when Bianca spoke again, "Well, it will be our first time. I want to make sure it's super special." She was still looking at herself in the mirror. She moved her hair out of her face and stood straighter, her chest pushed out. She whirled around to face me. "Do you really think it's too much?"

"You look hot, B. And I think Embry will like the red more than the black," I said, honestly.

She nodded, facing the mirror again for a final inspection. "You should wear the black then," she tossed the set to me; I almost didn't catch it because I was shocked by her words. "You look so good in black, Lee. If you wore this like under your dress, Jacob wouldn't be able to keep his hands off of you. Not that that's ever been a problem for you two." Bianca smirked at me through the mirror. "Trust me, girl, throw that on, make his heart race a little bit, put on that cute Leah Clearwater charm that I know you have, and he'll be like 'Bella who? What wedding? What treaty?'"