"Just the same," I told her. "I'll feel better when you have some sugar and food in you."
The waitress returned with the cokes and a basket of bread. She put them in front of me, and asked for my order, trying to catch my eye in the process. I indicated that she should attend to Bella, and then went back to tuning her out. She had a vulgar mind.
"Hmph," Bella huffed in regards to the vulgar mind comment.
"Um..." Bella glanced quickly at the menu. "I'll have the mushroom ravioli."
The waitress turned back to me eagerly. "And you?"
"Nothing for me."
"He probably should have ordered something," Bella said, wondering if she had noticed his lack of appetite or not.
Bella made a slight face.
Well, that answered that question.
Hmm. She must have noticed that I never ate food. She noticed everything. And I always forgot to be careful around her.
I waited till we were alone again.
"Drink," I insisted.
I was surprised when she complied immediately and without objection. She drank until the glass was entirely empty, so I pushed the second coke toward her, frowning a little. Thirst, or shock?
She drank a little more, and then shuddered once.
"Are you cold?"
"It's just the coke," she said, but she shivered again, her lips trembling slightly as if her teeth were about to chatter.
"You call yourself a gentleman but you let her get cold like that... I'm so disappointed in you," Jacob chuckled.
The pretty blouse she wore looked too thin to protect her adequately; it clung to her like a second skin, almost as fragile as the first. She was so frail, so mortal. "Don't you have a jacket?"
"Yes." She looked around herself, a little perplexed. "Oh - I left it in Jessica's car."
I pulled off my jacket, wishing that the gesture was not marred by my body temperature. It would have been nice to have been able to offer her a warm coat. She stared at me, her cheeks warming again. What was she thinking now?
I handed her the jacket across the table, and she put it on at once, and then shuddered again.
Yes, it would be very nice to be warm.
"Tough luck, man," Jacob chuckled.
"Shut up," Bella said, it was the thought that counted after all, besides the jacket was sure to warm her up soon enough.
"Thanks," she said. She took a deep breath, and then pushed the too-long sleeves back to free her hands. She took another deep breath.
Was the evening finally settling in? Her color was still good; her skin was cream and roses against the deep blue of her shirt.
"That color blue looks lovely with your skin," I complimented her. Just being honest.
Bella smiled, blushing slightly.
"Good with your skin!" Jacob repeated laughing. "That's a weird way of putting it."
"Shut up," Bella hissed at him, she didn't need his laughter at the moment.
She flushed, enhancing the effect.
She looked well, but there was no point in taking chances. I pushed the basket of bread toward her.
"Really," she objected, guessing my motives. "I'm not going into shock."
"You should be - a normal person would be. You don't even look shaken." I stared at her, disapproving, wondering why she couldn't be normal and then wondering if really wanted her to be that way.
"No, you really don't," Jacob answered. "You don't like normal at all."
"I feel very safe with you," she said, her eyes, again, filled with trust. Trust I didn't deserve.
Her instincts were all wrong - backwards.
"There's nothing wrong with my instincts," Bella huffed.
"I'm not so sure about that," Jacob said. "Honestly, you should be scared of this guy... but whatever."
That must be the problem. She didn't recognize danger the way a human being should be able to. She had the opposite reaction. Instead of running, she lingered, drawn to what should frighten her...
How could I protect her from myself when neither of us wanted that?
"This is more complicated than I'd planned," I murmured.
I could see her turning my words over in her head, and I wondered what she made of them. She took a breadstick and began to eat without seeming aware of the action.
"Okay, you're killing me here," Jacob said. "I want to know what you're thinking already."
Bella just chuckled at that.
She chewed for a moment, and then leaned her head to one side thoughtfully.
"Usually you're in a better mood when your eyes are so light," she said in a casual tone.
"I didn't expect that," Jacob said.
Her observation, stated so matter of factly, left me reeling. "What?"
"You're always crabbier when your eyes are black - I expect it then. I have a theory about that," she added lightly.
"What's your theory?" Jacob asked.
"Stop interrupting so much," Bella huffed at him.
"Sorry... I'm just so drawn into this," Jacob said, "I keep forgetting that you don't know anything."
So she had come up with her own explanation. Of course she had. I felt a deep sense of dread as I wondered how close she'd come to the truth.
"More theories?"