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Destiny Awaits	By : Lollydolly Category: Twilight Series > Het > Bella/Jasper Views: 19535 -:- Recommendations : 2 -:- Currently Reading : 2
Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or make any money from this story.

Chapter List
- 20
- 21
- 22
An: Thanks for the reviews guys. I love you for them! So, you all liked that last chapter huh? Well I hope this one doesn’t leave you too frustrated with me.

Thank you once again to my wonderful beta, ladyofkeegan. You are awesome honey!
Chapter Twenty-One
Jasper
“What are you thinking?” I had to know.
“I love you.” She said it so matter-of-factly, that it hurt.
“I know.” I laughed at my own stupidity. Of course, she didn’t want me as much as I wanted her. When she had said “I love you” she meant as a brother. Putting my hands on her legs was obviously only a friendly thing for her, and as usual, I’d failed to read her emotions correctly. My thumbs stopped moving. “I love you too.”
Disappointment. Anger. Resolve. All three came rolling off her in waves.
“No. I mean I love you. I’m in love with you! You must know. How could you not. I am so in love with you and I think I always have been. I’m so sick of wondering how you feel, and if you know.” What?!?! Am I hallucinating? She didn’t really say that. I just wanted her to, so that is what I heard. As she spoke her feelings changed, she was relived at first, and then anticipation took over. “Can’t you feel how much I want you? How much I love you?”
For a minute, I couldn’t move or speak as I tried to process what she was saying. Could this be real? Was everything I wanted finally happening? Bella’s mounting sadness pulled me back from my thoughts.
“Say it again.” I whispered. I needed something to prove that this wasn’t all in my head, that I wasn’t insane.
She answered me hesitantly. “I… I love you.” They were the sweetest words I’d ever heard. I felt as if some barrier had lifted and now I could truly feel the depth of her emotions for the first time. She really did love me. She really did want me. In the same way that I had wanted and loved her for so long.
In a movement that took less than a quarter of a second I stood us up, turned her around and pressed her against the closet door to finally claim her lips in a kiss. No amount of imagination had prepared me for the experience of her warm plump lips against mine. I could feel everything, both the curves of her body as it molded to mine, and every emotion she was experiencing. It was as if she was giving me access to everything she felt all at once.
Her hands reached up and her fingers threaded through my hair, pulling me closer. I complied eagerly, and then caught the faint scent of her arousal in the air. For a moment, I lost control of my gift, and all the lust I was feeling was broadcast straight onto my sweet Bella. She trembled against me in response. My hands that had so far remained on the door to either side of her decided to join in, running down her sides, over her hips, and onto her ass. I wanted more. I needed more. As I lifted her up, trying to bring her closer to me anyway I could, she wrapped her legs tightly around my hips.
The burning heat of her core scorched me through my jeans, and I forced myself to pull away from the kiss before I lost control completely. I breathed her name as our foreheads touched in a gesture that seemed even more intimate than anything that had happened before.
She initiated the second kiss, it was just as desperate, and passionate as the first. Before I had a chance to fully respond, light flooded the room. The door disappeared from behind Bella, and I took one, shaky step forward into the corridor, too shocked to keep my balance without moving. My hands shifted to the backs of her thighs to get a more secure grip of her as I tried to remember where we were. It was then I saw my family standing around us, smiling.
“Finally.” Emmett boomed. His emotions were as scrambled as mine were. He was feeling everything from anger to joy. I decided it was all his fault we’d been interrupted. He would pay later.
Bella seemed entirely baffled by the change of circumstances, as if she’d forgotten life outside the closet existed. I glanced down at her, expecting to see her face crimson from being caught, but she wasn’t even blushing. I kept a tight hold of her.
Esme was a wreck. “I’m… so… happy… for you.” If I’d thought about it at all, I’d have expected this reaction from her. After all, she had been planning this moment for two months. It was only then that I figured out they’d locked us in there for this exact reason. The whole family had conspired to get us together. I didn’t think it was possible, but somehow I managed to get even happier.
Bella’s legs released their grip and slid down my body deliciously. I tried not to growl while I held her snugly against me. This was mainly because I couldn’t bear to let her go, but it also served the purpose of hiding my fairly obvious erection from people who’d probably rather not see it.
For the first time since her declaration, Bella tilted her head to look up at me, and smiled. Her pupils were still huge and full of lust, but her gaze held so much love that my long dead heart almost beat again. I felt her desire escalate as she looked back into my eyes, and then we moved together to kiss again. This time it was tender at first but it quickly grew into more. Her arms wrapped around my neck, pulling me down to her as she moaned into my mouth.
I was about to pick her up again when Carlisle cleared his throat loudly. Thank goodness he was there, Bella’s kisses made me forget that we were at the hospital.
The illusive blush finally put in an appearance, and she pressed her burning face against my neck. After a few seconds of embarrassment, she turned with me to face the family.
Carlisle grinned at us. “Perhaps you’d like to go home, I’m sure we can manage without you.” He offered, laughing.
“Oh no.” Emmett interjected. “I don’t think they can be trusted to be alone. Look at how they’re behaving in a hospital full of people.” When had he turned into our father? I was about to snap at him when I realized he was only feeling protective of Bella. I understood his earlier reactions now too. Instead of being annoyed, I found I liked him more for wanting to keep my girl safe. My girl. I liked that. My Bella.
Bella on the other hand, was getting thoroughly irritated, but she cheered up immensely when Rose smacked the back of her husband’s head. “Shut up.” She growled. “It’s taken them long enough, they deserve some privacy.”
I gave her a grateful smile and saw Bella doing the same. Rose ignored me, grinning at Bella and feeling an enormous amount of curiosity. I had a feeling Emmett and I would be kicked out of the house soon so that they could have a good gossip.
Emmett couldn’t quite deal with the arrangement. “Fine.” He grumbled. “I’ll come with you to supervise.”
“Don’t you dare.” I warned him, holding Bella a little tighter.
“What would the children think if Santa disappeared?” Rosalie said while she dragged him away. He was complaining about leaving Bella with me.
Esme pulled both of us into a hug, and winked through her dry sobs. “We’ll be home late.” She promised, before taking Carlisle’s hand and following the others. Carlisle turned and tossed me his car keys, smirking at something Esme was whispering to him.
All alone again, now all I wanted to do was pull her back into the closet and lock us in there for another few hours, but I knew that I shouldn’t. Bella was worth far more than that. “Home?” I asked hopefully.
Bella grinned and reached up to press a quick, soft kiss to my lips. “Home.” She nodded, taking my hand in hers and tugging me towards the stairs. This time, I stared unashamedly at her ass as she walked, and remembered that I’d been touching it just a few minutes ago. I groaned and wished there was some way to turn back time, and end up back in the closet.
Bella laughed, and tucked herself into my side. I knew she was feeling pretty much the same as I was. I’ll never know quite how we made it out into the parking lot without ending up in another closet, or worse, making out in the hallway. I know we both wanted too.
The second the doors of the car shut, awkwardness descended. I had absolutely no idea what to say to her. We had gone from friends to… something we’d yet to define, in the last half an hour. In the hospital, all I could think about was getting her out of her clothes, but out here, I realized there was a lot we needed to talk about.
I started driving in the hopes that I’d be able to collect my thoughts by the time Bella was ready to talk. Bella. My beautiful Bella. She feels the same. I wondered how long she’d felt this way, and how much time we’d wasted. Why hadn’t I been a man, and just come out and told her the truth?
I thanked my lucky stars that Bella was staying tonight with us. It was Christmas Eve tomorrow, and we were going to celebrate. I’d never dreamed I’d have so much to celebrate. Tomorrow night she’d be back at her home, ready for Christmas with Charlie.
Thinking about Charlie reminded me there was something I’d need to address quickly. Charlie liked me, I’d even spent some time with him alone while Bella was busy, and we’d watched sports together while Bella cooked. More importantly, he trusted me with his daughter. Something I would forever be grateful for. He deserved to know that our relationship had changed. I decided I’d go and see him, to ask for his permission. I wanted things to start out right, and getting Charlie on my side would be a big step in that direction.
With my mind made up on that front, my thoughts turned to Alice. I was certain she knew what had happened, and something told me she might even have been part of it. In any case, I was now more eager for her to come home. If we both had new mates, things would be easier. Maybe one day we’d even have the sort of relationship Bella and Emmett had.
My happiness faltered when my thoughts turned to Edward. He wouldn’t take this well. He still loved Bella, and possibly always would. He’d stopped sending her flowers now, but she told me that he sent her at least one text a day to either profess his love or apologize again. I now knew without a doubt that Bella would never want him back. Edward being the sullen brooding vampire he was, he would unquestionably complicate things.
I noticed she was starting to get worried. Why was that? Was she frightened that I would jump her the moment we got home? I reminded myself that she was probably inexperienced, and to take things slowly as torturous as that would be. I didn’t think that was the problem though, as she was even starting to get a little upset. How could she be sad? I knew she loved me like I loved her, and I was beyond ecstatic to have found out.
Shit. I hadn’t told her that I really loved her. After she said she loved me, I’d let my lust take over completely. Was that it? Was she worried I didn’t feel quite the same? As I turned down our drive, I sneaked a look at her. She was chewing her lip and fiddling with the hem of her dress, becoming more disheartened with every second. I stopped the car.
“Bella, angel, tell me what’s wrong.”
She blushed and started to feel nervous. “I was just wondering… how exactly… you feel about… me?” She asked haltingly. I was right. I am an idiot and I felt awful.
“I’m so sorry; I should have told you already.” I was tempted to hit myself for making her feel this way. “I love you. I’ve loved you for months. In fact I think I have ALWAYS loved you. You’re everything to me.”
“You love me?” Bella frowned. I smiled and nodded. “You really love me? Like, you’re in love with me?”
It was like listening to myself from half an hour ago. I hadn’t believed it at first either. “I am more in love with you than I have ever been with anyone in my life.” I pulled her out of her seat and into my lap, to kiss her. This time I was tender and I let her feel exactly what I felt for her. She gasped against my lips and pulled back to look at me, her eyes full of awe.
“Is that how you feel?” She asked breathlessly.
“That’s only a fraction of it.” I whispered back, showing her a little more. She crashed her lips to mine again, and this time I couldn’t resist tasting her properly. Her lips parted the second I ran my tongue across them. She was as eager as I was, tasting me as I tasted her. She was delicious.
One arm wrapped around her waist, the other rested on her knee for a moment, before slowly sliding upwards to continue the path I’d been on before. The amount of desire coming from her doubled as my fingers brushed her skin above the top of a stocking. It was like touching soft fire. There was no other way to describe the feel of her silky skin burning my hand. She trembled and I growled, and then a car back fired somewhere in the distance, pulling us both out of our lust-induced haze.
Bella blushed crimson and giggled. “I don’t think this is the best place to be doing… this.” She whispered, climbing back into her own seat. I felt her loss immediately, but she was right. I didn’t want to make a mess of this. I wanted to do everything right, I wanted it to be perfect.
“You’re right.” I sighed. “I’d like to talk to Charlie anyway.”
She was confused. “Why?”
“He trusts me with you, and I don’t want to lie to him. I was hoping you’d let me ask him for permission to… well, date you I suppose.” I explained. She was a little angry; I was getting it wrong already. “I mean, I know it’s up to you who you date, but I would like to speak to Charlie. I think it would make things easier for us in the long run.”
“Are you saying you want to be my boyfriend Jasper?” She grinned at me. I nearly hit myself again; I kept getting ahead of myself. Love is sure messing with my vampire brain. Vampires are supposed to be able to focus on mainly things at once but I seem to be only able to focus on My Lovable Bella.
“If you’ll have me.”
“Of course Jasper, I love you.” I had it right somehow, she was pleased now. “Do you want me to come with you?”
“No, there’s no need. Why don’t you relax at home while I go and speak to him now, man to man.” She chuckled at that.
I started the car up again and drove the rest of the way to the house. “I love you Jasper Whitlock.” She told me, giving me a quick kiss as she left the car.
“I love you too, Bella Swan” I knew I was grinning like a fool as I drove away, watching her smiling at the car through the rearview mirror, but I didn’t care. I had never felt so whole, or so happy. I had everything I wanted in the world. I drove to Charlie's almost without noticing where I was going at all. Every bit of me was busy shouting that Bella loved me. Me!
When I was about a minute from the house, I started to think about what I was going to do. The nerves came crashing down. What if he said no? What if he stopped me from seeing her? Would she do as Charlie asked and stay away from me? Was this about to end before it had even really begun?
No. I was hoping Charlie would see me asking for his approval as a good thing, and I was almost sure he would. I gave a little thought to coaxing him into agreeing by using my gifts, but decided that would be far worse than sneaking around behind his back. I was on my own on this one.
Besides, it was stupid to think Bella would stop seeing me because of what her dad said. She’d done everything in her power to spend time with me even while we were only friends, and from what I’d felt from her today, she saw me as much more than that. The love she was projecting was stronger than any emotion I’d ever felt from a human.
Despite the fact that I’d convinced myself this was only a formality, I still wanted it to go well. Charlie’s blessing would give our relationship a good start. My whole family, except Edward, was happy about us being together, if Charlie felt the same, it would make everything easier for us, and more importantly, for Bella. I didn’t want her to have to make sacrifices to be with me.
I got out of the car, straightened my stupid sweater and attempted to tame my hair before I knocked on the door. If I were human, I’d have sweaty palms by now I was so nervous. I’d never done anything like this before.
I could tell Charlie was in a good mood as he approached the door, and I started to calm down a little. The door in front of me opened, Charlie smiled at me and then looked around, frowning.
“I thought Bella was with you?” He asked.
I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “She’s at my house. It’s you I’ve come to see Chief.” I usually called him Charlie, as he asked me to, but that didn’t feel quite right now.
He stepped back and opened the door wider for me, feeling curious and worried.
“Sit down then.” He said, grabbing himself a beer as I perched on the edge of the sofa. “Are you in some sort of trouble son?” I smiled foolishly at him. He’d never called me son before.
“No, it’s nothing like that. I have to tell you something…. Um, ask you something I mean.” I stumbled over the words and wished I’d agreed to bring Bella with me. She would have handled this so much better. I decided to go with the truth and blurted out. “I love Bella.”
He shook his head and laughed. “I know that son, is that it?” Charlie knows? It seemed like Bella was the only person I’d managed to hide it from.
I gulped. “She told me she loves me too today.” I couldn’t entirely hold back the pride in my voice, and I worried Charlie would misinterpret it.
“I know that too.” He grinned. “Are you honestly telling me that the two of you have taken this long to do something about it?”
“Err… yes?” I felt like a complete idiot. “Does that mean you’re ok with it?”
He stopped smiling. “Well to be fair, I thought it was happening already.” He confessed. “I appreciate that you’re being honest with me, and telling me Jasper. I’m just wondering why it’s you and not Bella telling me about it.”
“I… um… I came to ask your permission to date Bella.” I muttered.
“You have it.” He said without hesitation. “I can think of no one who would take better care of her. I get the feeling you’d die for her, or kill for her if the need arose. You look at her as if you can barely believe she allows you to be near her. You look at her like you don’t deserve her.”
I could only stare dumbly back at him as he basically told me he could see right through me.
“What I don’t think you realize, is that all those things mean you do deserve her. These last three months, she’s really grown up, and I like the woman she’s grown up to be. I think you had a big part in that. Once upon a time, I liked hearing that Edward was keeping her out of trouble, but it pleased me even more to know that she was capable of going against him, and dealing with things for herself. I think you keep her safe without smothering her, and that’s what she needs.”
“Aren’t you going to say you’ll shoot me if I hurt her?” I couldn’t believe it could possibly be this easy. He told me I deserved his daughter, without a trace of sarcasm, he felt only love. My throat tightened with tears I was unable to shed.
He laughed loudly, throwing his head back. “I don’t think I need to, do you? She’s still my baby girl, but she can take care of herself. Something tells me she’d sort you out for herself if you ever did anything to hurt her. Besides, I trust you not to do that.” He said, becoming more serious again. “Hurting her would hurt you too.”
I nodded. He’d never know quite how right he was. Thinking back to the night I’d attacked her still killed me. And knowing Bella had been hurt again because of me, this time by Edward, was even more painful. I’d never hurt her again.
“What would you have done if I’d said no?” Charlie asked. His face was stern, but he was amused.
“I don’t know.” I answered honestly. “I’d try to make you change your mind first, but I wouldn’t give her up. She means too much to me. If she respected your decision, I’d have settled for being a hopeful friend.” I smiled, hoping I’d answered right.
It seemed like I had. He held his hand out to me, and shook mine unflinchingly. He’d grown used to me being cold; Bella told him I had poor circulation. “Welcome to the family kid. You should stay on Christmas Eve and have Christmas with us.”
“You’re still going to let me stay here?” I had thought there was no chance of letting me spend the night in Bella’s room once he knew there was something more than friendship between us.
“If I tried to stop you, I’d have to face the wrath of Bella, and she’s scary when she’s angry.” He smiled. “The door stays open though, that’s never going to change, not even when you’re married.”
“Married?” I choked.
I could tell he was only playing with me, but the thought was there. Maybe one day she would marry me. I could see her gliding towards me in white, looking even more like an angel than usual.
“Breathe son. I’m not expecting you to ask me for her hand anytime soon.” He chuckled.
I shook my head, and felt that stupid smile making an appearance once again. “But if I asked you if I could marry her, you’d say yes right?” He paled considerably, now it was my turn to have a little fun. “I can’t wait to make her Mrs. Hale.”
“Now, don’t rush into anything Jasper. You’re still in high school. Let’s talk about this again in a few years.” He was feeling just a little overwhelmed. “And while we’re on the subject, please don’t make me a grandfather.”
“I was kidding Charlie. I’d love to spend the rest of my life with her, but I’m not making any big plans . . . . . yet.” I smiled at him, and he glared, realizing he’d been duped.
“Get out of here. Go and take care of my little girl.” He ordered, turning back to the TV, feeling hugely relieved. I felt exactly the same way. I got in the car and drove home as fast as the traffic would let me.
________________________
Bella
I watched the Mercedes pull away and head off down the drive, and for the first time in three months, I wasn’t sad to be parted from Jasper. I think it was simply because I knew he was coming back, and more importantly, he was mine.
My mind was on repeat, screaming ‘he loves me’ again and again. I couldn’t remember a time when I’d felt this joyful, or this peaceful. Everything had fallen into place. Jasper loves me, and he knows I love him. I wasn’t even nervous about him going to speak to Charlie. Charlie liked him. At times I even thought Charlie liked him more than me. I grinned like an idiot and realized I had yet to move.
I practically danced into the house, my clumsiness not even impeding my progress. The house that usually felt so horribly empty when I was in it alone, now seemed fine. I didn’t feel alone. I skipped into the kitchen to grab a can of soda. Since I’d started spending half my week here, there was always food in the kitchen. I had tried to buy it myself, but realized that was never going to happen, as Esme always bought things for me whether I’d bought my own or not. And I knew she loved to do it, so I’d given in, and decided that if it made her happy I could cope with her spending a little money on me.
I went upstairs to change out of the ridiculous outfit Rosalie had forced me into. I’d had intended to burn it after spreading some Christmas cheer at the hospital, but Jasper seemed to like it, so I decided to keep it.
My phone buzzed as I went back downstairs and I yanked it out of my pocket, ready to tell whoever it was my joyous news. Sadly, it was just another text message from Edward.
Loved you yesterday,

Love you still.

Always have,

Always will.
I never replied, and today was no exception. As much as I’d like to send him a message telling him I was now with Jasper, I knew that would be cruel and unhelpful. He was content to bug me with daily declarations of love through texts, but he was still refusing to speak to me like an adult. I was actually quite glad of that now though. If we’d talked things through he might have come home, and there was no way he would have let everyone pull what they had today. If Edward had been here, I probably wouldn’t have confessed to Jasper.
As I was putting my phone away, it rang. “Hello?” I answered, I could hear the excitement in my voice as I hoped it was Jasper, or at least someone I could talk to about him.
“Oh Bella.” The voice on the other end of the line breathed. I froze. Why had he chosen now to finally call me? He was spoiling my high.
“Edward.” I said shortly, tempted to simply hang up.
“I’m so sorry my love, I just had to hear your voice. I miss you so much Bella. I need to come home to you. I desire to make it up to you.” He sounded so broken I almost gave in, but then I thought about what his presence would do to me and Jasper.
“No… you can’t.” I stuttered. “You, we, I… Edward…”
“Please my love.” He begged. My heart constricted.
“I’m not your love anymore, Edward. Stop calling me that.” I whispered.
“Don’t say that Bella, please don’t say that. I know I did wrong, and I’m sorry, so, so sorry for that. I hurt you, and I’ll never forgive myself for it. But I can’t be without you.”
“Edward… we can’t be together, not ever, even if I could forgive you for what happened.” In truth, I had already forgiven him; I knew that he hadn’t meant hurt me. I wanted nothing more than to tell him he could come home and make him happy again. I hated hearing him sound like this. Maybe I would have done a few months ago, but I wasn’t about to give up Jasper, and everything I wanted simply to make Edward happy. He needed to move on.
My life wasn’t Edward anymore. My life is now my own with Jasper being a huge part of it. I had grown up since I wasn’t living under Edward’s shadow anymore.
“Why Bella? You’re all there is for me. If I can look past your infidelity, surely you can give me another chance too.”
“My infidelity?” What the hell was he talking about now?
“What I saw, in Esme’s mind. I saw how she caught you and Jasper.” He spat out Jasper’s name like it was poison. Things began to click into place. He’d misunderstood what he’d seen. He’d attacked me, not because he thought Jasper had, but because he’d thought there was something going on between us.
I tried to imagine Jasper’s attack from Esme’s point of view. I was practically shirtless, Jasper’s hand was tangled in my hair, and he was lapping at my neck. It hadn’t been sexual at all, but I could see how it might have looked that way to someone seeing it from the outside. He must only have caught a glimpse from Esme’s mind, and added things up wrong. Edward thought I liked the danger of being with Jasper, and he’d tried to recreate it in a last desperate attempt to keep me. This was a bit too much to take in.
“What you saw, between Jasper and I, it wasn’t like that at all.” I began. I heard him scoff and got angry. “Shut up Edward, I am only going to explain this once, and you’d better listen. That night I got a call from Esme, asking me to come and help her with Jasper. Alice had called, and Jasper was distraught. If you remember, he also hadn’t eaten for at least three weeks. When he saw me, he lost it, and attacked me. What you saw was Jasper playing with his prey. He realized what he was doing before it was too late, and stopped. I didn’t cheat on you Edward, and I can’t believe you think so little of me.”
He was silent for a long time, and I was about to hang up when he spoke. “He attacked you? I’ll kill him Bella. I’ll keep you safe. You should have told me.” He rambled.
“I AM safe Edward. If you touch Jasper I swear to god, I’ll never look at you again. Your ‘attack’ caused far more damage than Jasper’s did, even though when Jasper hurt me, he was almost wild. He was heartbroken and didn’t know what was reality and what wasn’t. I forgave him immediately. You hurt me deliberately Edward. If I need to be kept safe from anyone, it’s you.”
I knew that wasn’t really true, and I knew the words would hurt him terribly, but I didn’t care. He threatened my Jasper. My heart beat furiously as I thought of my man getting hurt. I had to hurt Edward in the only way I knew how, to keep him away. To keep Jasper safe.
“Bella please, no. I will never hurt you, never touch you like that again. I love you more than life Bella. You have to tell me you know that. I never meant…” He sobbed and I felt like my heart had been squeezed.
“It’s ok.” I soothed, fighting back my tears. I hated that I’d hurt him so much, but I couldn’t find it in me to regret it. He wasn’t thinking about hurting Jasper anymore and that was all that mattered. “I know Edward. I know you wouldn’t. But I don’t think you should see me for a while. You need to stop loving me. You need to understand that we are finished.”
“Don’t say that Bella. I love you. I’ll wait forever if I have to.” I couldn’t stand the sound of his pleading. It was killing me.
“You really will be waiting forever Edward.” I whispered. “I’m in love with someone else.”
“No, you just think you are.” He said desperately. “It’s a… a rebound… that’s it. We are meant to be Bella. We’re mates. I’ll wait as long as it takes. You just have to call me and I’ll be there.”
“No Edward, this is not a rebound. Please try to move on, like I have.” I felt like I might break down any minute. I was feeling so guilty about hurting him this much, and angry that he dared to call Jasper a rebound. He was so much more than that.
“I can’t move on. Everywhere I go you are all I see. Everything I do is for you.” He whispered.
I couldn’t deal with this anymore. I’d had enough. “Edward, I have to go. Please think about what I said, and try to understand. I’ll call you in a few days.”
He sighed into the phone. “I’ll try Bella, but it won’t work. I love you.” I hung up without replying. While a part of me did love him, I knew saying that would give him hope, which wasn’t fair.
I sank onto the sofa feeling drained as I scrubbed the tears from my cheeks. My good mood had completely evaporated. Why did it have to be today? I wonder if Edward was secretly psychic like Alice. I sipped my soda and tried to calm down.
It was difficult to believe I’d said such hurtful things to the man I’d once loved more than anything. He didn’t deserve it. Not so long ago, I’d have given in and taken him back, simply to stop him from being upset. I realized I was stronger, and I didn’t know how it had happened, or if I liked it.
My phone rang again, and just as I was about to stamp on it, I recognized the tune. Vanilla Ice. Emmett. He would cheer me up.
“What’s up Emmett?” I sniffed, realizing too late that I sounded like I’d been crying.
“What’s he done? I’ll kill him. I’m coming home right now.”
“He’s not here Emmett. He’s talking to Charlie. But before you hunt him down, it’s not Jasper who upset me, its Edward.” I babbled on, hoping to stop him before he made a scene at the hospital.
“Edward? What did he do? Is he there at the house? I’ll be right there.” He growled. “I still owe him a good beating.”
“No he’s not here. He called to tell me that he loves me.”
“Why did he have to do that? Is he coming home? Can I beat him up for you?”
I laughed, feeling instantly better. “I don’t think he’s coming home Em. You’ll have to wait. He was apologizing, sort of.” I explained.
“Did you tell him about Jazz?”
“No, I did tell him I was in love with someone else though.” I frowned. “He didn’t even ask me who it was.”
“He probably thinks you’re either confused, or lying. You know what Eddie’s like, it will take him a good while to believe that you might like someone else more than him. He is the ego king after all.” Emmett pointed out.
I snorted. “Yep, he told me it was just a rebound thing, and that we were meant for each other. Well we clearly aren’t.”
Emmett laughed. “So, Jasper isn’t with you then?”
“No, he’s gone to ask Charlie for permission to date me.” I was so proud of him for that, it was adorable.
“Ok, I’ll call you every half hour to make sure things are ok. You just tell me if he touches you and I’ll be home in ten minutes, ok?” He’d have made an excellent father, I thought, giggling.
“What if I want him to touch me?” I asked innocently, and was well rewarded by the incoherent muttering Emmett replied with for several seconds.
“No Bella, absolutely not. You do not want him to touch you. In fact, you don’t even want to kiss him, ok?” He managed to grind out once he’d recovered.
“Emmett, I really do think it’s lovely that you’re being so protective, and if it were any other man I’m sure I’d appreciate it. But this is Jasper, your brother. You know he’d never hurt me.”
“Yes he’s my brother.” Emmett sighed. “But he’s also a man, and I know what you’re wearing. I don’t like the idea of you in that outfit with any man, brother or not.”
I laughed again and blushed. “Emmett, Jasper won’t do anything I don’t want him too. If he does, I’ll call you right away. How does that sound?” I only said it to placate him, as I was fairly sure there was nothing I didn’t want him to do to me.
“Ok.” He grumbled after a few more seconds of muttering. I could hear laughter in the background and assumed either Rosalie or Esme was listening in. The laughter was followed by some scuffling, the sound of the phone hitting the floor and then Rosalie’s triumphant voice.
“Sorry Em, it’s my turn, you’ve whined enough for one day.” She goaded her husband. “Hi Bella, time for a quick chat?” She asked excitedly.
“I suppose so.” I grumbled, though I was secretly just as excited.
“Well? What happened, I want to know exactly what happened from the moment we shut the door.”
I stretched out on the couch, smiling at nothing again. “Nothing happened for ages, and then Jasper grabbed my hips, I think he was trying to keep me still. I don’t know what possessed me to do it, but ended up moving his hands to my legs.” I blushed remembering my forwardness.
“I don’t really know what happened then. I wanted him so badly, and it seemed like he wanted me too, he was stroking my legs, but then he asked me what I was thinking, and I told him I loved him. I couldn’t keep my mouth shut. He said he loved me too, but he wasn’t saying it the right way, and he stopped rubbing my legs. I got a bit angry and cracked and told him how I felt.”
I was so glad Rose kept quiet while I rambled.
“The next thing I know I’m having the best kiss of my entire life. Honestly Rose, I thought I was going to melt or explode or something...” I slipped into my new favorite memory. Well, it was joint favorite along with Jasper telling me he loved me.
“Bella?” Rosalie laughed. “Are you still there?”
“Huh?”
“Stop daydreaming for a minute, I want to know what happened next.”
It took me a moment to remember what part of the story I was on. “Um… oh, right, that was when we were so rudely interrupted. Whose idea was that by the way?”
“Emmett’s obviously. He didn’t want to leave you with Jasper for any longer than necessary.” She giggled, and I heard Emmett muttering again in the background. Then I heard a far more welcome sound. The Mercedes coming up the drive.
“Sorry Rose, Jasper’s home, I have to go. I’ll talk to you later.” I promised. “Or tomorrow.” I closed the phone, cutting off the sound of her protests and ran to the door, opening it just in time for him to walk through and pick me up.
“So? How did it go?” I asked quickly. I wanted to get the discussions out as fast as possible so we could get on with more entertaining things.
He sat on the couch, bringing me with him. I curled up in his lap with my back against the armrest. “He thought we were already together.” Jasper smiled. “He’s pleased about it I think. He even asked me to stay for Christmas.”
“He asked you to stay for Christmas?” To say I was surprised would be an understatement. I couldn’t imagine Charlie letting me have my boyfriend stay overnight. “Did he say you had to sleep on the couch?”
Jasper shook his head and grinned. “We just have to keep the door open. Nothing will change there.” He told me. I get to keep him. I thought back to that day in art class when I’d wondered about what it would be like to be with him. I’d thought things would be the same, only with the bonus of kissing. I’d been right. And wrong…..because honestly, our relationship had just started and it was already incredible. It can only get better.
“Could you promise me something?” I asked tentatively. I needed only one assurance from him before I gave myself over to this relationship.
“Anything.” He whispered seductively. I briefly lost my train of thought.
He chuckled and I came back to the present. This was important to me, and I wanted to get it out of the way now. “I need you to promise me that you won’t be like Edward. I can’t cope with someone I love smothering me again, or keeping things from me all the time. Promise me you won’t change.”
“I promise never to withhold anything from you.” He said formally, smirking a little. “And I promise to try not to be an overbearing asshole when you manage to walk directly into danger.”
I slapped his chest and kissed him. I knew what he meant by walking into danger. It seemed to be unavoidable for me. In my defence, I’d steered clear of near death experiences for over two months now. Maybe I’d somehow been cured of danger-magnetitus. Fingers crossed.
I let my eyes trail over Jasper’s face taking him in without having to worry about him catching me staring. Eventually my eyes came to rest on the spot just below his ear where his jaw ended. I licked my lips. That one inch of skin had been taunting me for weeks. I gave in and kissed it. Jasper groaned and shifted beneath me.
“Not now Bella.” He said huskily. God he sounded sexy like that. “There’s something I want from you too.”
I tried desperately hard to make sense of his words instead of delving into what I wished they meant. He had agreed to my request, so I focused on him, looking into his eyes to await his. He looked terrified. I put one hand on either side of his face and concentrated on all the love I felt for him to make him feel better. “What is, Jasper?”
He closed his eyes and breathed deeply. “I need you to promise me that if you ever stop loving me, if things don’t work out, you won’t just leave.” He whispered shakily. Any ground Alice had gained in being forgiven was lost in that second. She had scarred him badly. “If your feelings change, I need you to tell me. I won’t be mad, I’ll just be your friend again, I’ll be whatever you’ll let me. Please promise me Bella.”
“I promise Jasper, but I can go one better than that. I promise I’ll never leave you because it would kill me. My feelings won’t change. I can’t explain it, but I know that you’re all there is for me.” He pulled me closer and rested his head on top of mine for a moment before speaking again.
“Thank you.” His relief was easy to hear in his voice. “You’re all there is for me too.”
I nuzzled my face into his neck and breathed in his scent, relaxing completely. I’d got my forever, and forever started today. I realised I’d yet to talk to him about my plans for graduation. Now seemed like the perfect time to bring it up, as we were already spilling our guts.
“How do you feel about me becoming a vampire?” I asked timidly without raising my head. I was worried that he would feel the same way Edward had, and I didn’t know what I would do if he did.
“Is that something you still want?”
“I... yes. I’ve already spoken to Carlisle about it, and he’s agreed to do it after graduation.” I spoke quickly, before I chickened out.
“That’s the best news I’ve heard since you told me you loved me.” He laughed. I was sorely tempted to get up and dance. He wanted me forever too.
One of his hands slipped under my shirt to stoke my back, I was reminded of the first time he’d done that, on my birthday, and how I liked it even then.
“I wish I could be human for you.” He said quietly, breaking a few minutes of comfortable silence.
“Silly man.” I scoffed. “Sixty years would never be enough. Even forever won’t be enough time with you.” I really meant that. As far as I was concerned, I’d never be able to get enough of him. I wouldn’t want him to be human, if he was I’d have to worry about losing him all the time. Edward used to worry about me that way, the difference was, he wasn’t willing to do anything about it.
Jasper held me tighter, and I felt all his love again, along with gratitude. I loved when he did that, talked to me without words. It had taken me a while to get used to him asking me to explain myself by making me curious, or telling me that something interesting was happening by making me excited. But I loved it. Sometimes I tried to answer him in the same way, but it usually just made him laugh, as I wasn’t too good at making myself feel things. When I tried he usually only ever felt frustration from me.
My phone rang yet again, and I worried for a moment that it would be Edward, but then I heard Emmett’s ring tone again. He was going to drive me nuts if he kept this up. I turned the phone off without answering. Jasper waited for me to explain.
“He’s already called me once to make sure you’re behaving yourself.” I sighed. Jaspers laughter rumbled through me, making me join in. I loved his laugh.
“He’ll get used to it soon, and if not, Rose will keep him busy for us so that we actually have some time to ourselves.”
Time to ourselves. We’d already done more than Edward and I ever had, what else could we do? I thought back to when we’d been in the car, and the way Jasper’s hand had felt, cool against the heat of my skin, the way his touch had somehow burnt me, and made me shiver all at the same time. I realised I was breathing a little fast, and that Jasper was laughing again.
“What?” I grumbled, already knowing the answer.
“How did you manage to hide that for so long?” He chuckled.
Play dumb, he might think he imagined it. “Hide what?”
“Would you like me to take you to bed, Bella?” He whispered. I trembled and tried not to moan. He laughed again. “That.”
I knew he could feel how much he was affecting me. Stupid powers. “It’s your fault.” I pouted.
He kissed my lips lightly, only intensifying what I was feeling. “How is it my fault?” He said, and then slowly kissed his way along my jaw. He was pure evil, teasing me like this.
“Because…” was the brilliant answer I came up with as he pressed his lips to my neck. I couldn’t think of anything else. He was driving me mad. I needed to make him stop before he got me even more worked up. I couldn’t cope with him pulling away while I wanted him this much.
I sat up a little straighter, and he stopped. The fact that it was me that had stopped him didn’t make it any less awful. A huge part of me wanted to forget my original plan and let him do whatever he wanted, no matter how much it would hurt when he decided it was dangerous to continue.
Trying to calm myself down as he continued to rub my back was difficult, so I decided I’d tell him about my other phone call.
“Edward called me after you left.” I told him, maybe talking about Edward wasn’t the most romantic topic, but I was still upset about it, and I wanted to know what Jasper thought I should do about him. “I was horrible to him.” I admitted.
“How were you horrible? What did you say? What did he say?” He never stopped his soothing rubbing, and made me feel better about what I’d said before I even told him about it.
“I told him I thought he was a danger to me. I made him think I didn’t trust him anymore, and I told him not to come back.” I felt guiltiest about the last statement. I was effectively keeping him away from his family, which was selfish.
“Why did you do that?” He asked. There was no judgement in his voice. He wasn’t mad at me for what I’d said, only curious.
“He wanted to come back to me, and I told him no, and he said that he’d looked past my ‘infidelity’.” I spat. “From what he’d seen in Esme’s mind, he thought that she’d caught us together, he never did know the truth. I filled him in on what had really happened, and he threatened to kill you, so I hurt him to keep him away.”
His hand stilled behind me, and he brought me closer to him. “You did it for me?” He whispered.
“I couldn’t stop myself, I just saw red and panicked.” The guilt crept back. “It was awful, he was sobbing, and I tried to make him feel better, but I couldn’t really take it back, because it meant you were safe.”
I only realised then that Jasper was more important to me than anything else in the world. I’d do anything to protect him. It scared me that I could feel that deeply. My love for Edward had never even been close to this, but that didn’t mean I’d stopped caring about him altogether.
“What do I do? I want him to be happy, and he should be here with us, but I don’t think coming home would help him.”
“I really don’t know.” Jasper said after a while. “I don’t like him upsetting you, and I’m not sure I’d trust him around you if he came home. Regardless of anything else, he won’t be desensitised to your scent anymore.” When he’d said he wouldn’t trust Edward around me I’d been immediately disappointed, thinking he’d broken his promise already, then I remembered that I wouldn’t trust Edward around him either, so I guessed it was ok this time.
“Staying away is probably for the best right now. Seeing you with me would only hurt him more I think. Did you tell him we were together?”
“No.” Should I have? No, hearing I was with Jasper would almost certainly have prompted him to come back. “I did tell him I was in love with someone else, but I didn’t tell him who, and he didn’t ask.”
“You’re in love with someone else?” He asked curiously, and I couldn’t resist sitting back to smile up at him. “Who might that be?”
“Oh, I don’t think you know him.” I told him dismissively.
He smirked. “Humour me.”
I turned around so I was facing him properly, with my knees either side of his hips on the couch. “He’s tall.” I whispered. “And strong... he has the sexiest golden curls and eyes that make me think I might melt when he looks at me.”
“What else?” He grinned, clasping his hands behind my back. “He sounds familiar.”
“He’s the most beautiful man I’ve ever seen, and when he kisses me everything else disappears.” I felt my cheeks heating up as he gave me a cocky smile and inched closer.
When he spoke again his lips were almost brushing mine as his breath swept across my face, dazzling me a little. “What’s the lucky man’s name?”
“I don’t remember.” I mumbled before crashing my lips to his again. For a while, there was nothing else in the world but his mouth on mine and his hands on my hips. It was heaven until I had to stop to catch my breath. I was a bit proud when I noticed Jasper’s breathing was as ragged as mine. I made him like that.
I watched, fascinated, as he closed his eyes and slowed his breathing, visibly calming himself down. I wished I could do it as easily. His throat moved as he swallowed once, and then opened his eyes. They gave him away completely, he was struggling with his desire as much as I was. We laughed at each other.
“How long have you loved this dashing man?” He asked, playing with my hair.
I didn’t need to ask what he meant. “I feel like I’ve always loved you, but I suppose it started that day in the garden.” That was only two days after Alice had left. Had I really started falling for him so quickly? I knew it was true. Though I hadn’t thought about it at the time, I knew now that seeing him in the sunlight, and then telling each other unimportant secrets later had started me on the path to loving him.

“But I didn’t know I was falling in love with you until you sang to me at Angela’s party.” I thought back to my impulsive kiss, and wondered how long he had wanted me.
“For me I think it started from the moment you held me when I broke. I didn’t know it was happening until Esme asked me how I felt about you the night after I lost control. That’s why I came to your house. I wanted to be sure that Esme was wrong. I was trying to prove to myself that I only loved you as a friend. It backfired. You fell asleep in my arms and I realised I was in very great danger of falling in love with you.”
I smiled at him, thinking about the night he’d turned up and sat staring at me for a few minutes. He’d said he just wanted company. Liar.
“By the time Angela's party rolled around, I was actively trying to make you like me back in the same way. That’s why I dressed as Spike.” He gave me such a sheepish look I was sure he should be blushing. “And why I sang to you. It was my way of telling you I loved you without really telling you.”
“But if you loved me even then, why didn’t you kiss me back?”
If possible, he looked even more embarrassed. “You surprised me.” He shrugged. “I’d spent most of the night watching you, and thinking about you, and wondering if I’d ever get the chance to kiss you, and when it happened it took me off guard. The thought that I’d wasted my only chance plagued me right up until today.”
“How could you not know Jasper? You’re supposed to be an empath.” I giggled. “You must have had an idea at least. Even without your gift, you should have known. We spend five nights a week together, and I talk in my sleep.”
“I caught little flickers sometimes, enough to keep me hoping, but never enough to be sure of what you felt.” He explained and then gave me a full on Cheshire cat grin. “And I know you talk in your sleep Bella. You’ve been having some very interesting dreams lately.”
So he did know about my less than innocent dreams. Right when I thought I was about to die of shame, he started talking again.
“You have no idea what a temptation you were.” He groaned. “The way you moved, the way you smelled, the way you moaned.” His arms shifted until he was pulling me flush against him. “Nothing in my life so far has ever been as hard as keeping my hands off you.”
“I... really...” I gasped as he ran his nose along my neck. “... wouldn’t have...” He kissed his way back down and over my collarbone. “...minded.” The last word came out as a whimper as his hands shifted down to my ass and he growled quietly against my throat. I was dying, and I was going to die happy.
Or at least I had hoped I was, until Jasper stopped altogether. “Emmett’s home.” He whispered.
There were two choices now, and neither of them allowed us to continue. We could either go upstairs, and Emmett would interrupt us in less than a minute, and probably give us a lecture, or we could stop now, and hopefully avoid the lecture. I chose the second and moved reluctantly from Jasper’s lap to sit a few inches away from him.
The look of sheer frustration and disappointment we shared was enough to have us laughing by the time everyone else entered the living room.
Their faces were priceless, and I didn’t need Jasper to tell me what they were feeling. Emmett came in looking ready to kill someone, probably Jasper, but as soon as he saw us, he grinned and squeezed into the too small space between us.
Carlisle and Rosalie looked baffled, and Esme was obviously quite disappointed to find like this. I knew they’d all expected to find us either not here at all, or in a much more compromising position. Their expressions were almost, but not quite, worth the interruption. Why on earth hadn’t we thought to go somewhere else? Oh yeah, because Esme had promised they’d be home late. I glared at her.
“Why didn’t you answer the phone, Bells?” Emmett asked throwing an arm over my shoulder.
“I was busy.” I snapped, already plotting a way of escaping with Jasper.
“Doing what?” He growled, now looking at Jasper, who grinned. Emmett thumped him in the chest, so I whacked Emmett and probably bruised my hand.
Jasper moved to sit on my other side and took my throbbing hand between his while I glared at my oaf of a ‘brother’.
After a few seconds of silence, Rosalie was the first to crack. “Bella, I really need your help upstairs.” She said with an all too obvious wink. I sighed, resigned to my fate. Maybe if I finished the story quickly I’d be allowed to escape. I wondered how Jasper felt about an extended holiday in Siberia. I hadn’t waited ten weeks just to be kept away from him all the time.
Emmett stood up and towered over Jasper. “I think you and I need to have a talk.” He said seriously. “A very important talk. In the woods. With Carlisle. Now.”
Well if we were going to be forced to separate, I wanted a kiss goodbye, family or no family. I twisted around and kissed him for all I was worth until Emmett physically removed me from the sofa and set me down next to Rosalie. He looked like he might be sick. Jasper looked like he wouldn’t be thinking about anything but me for a long time.
Emmett yanked him out of the house, Carlisle shrugged and followed them, chuckling.
I was so busy staring after him that I didn’t even notice Esme and Rose had pulled me back on to the couch and were sitting either side of me.
“We want to know everything.” Esme beamed.
Siberia was looking better all the time.
An: So... Did you like it? Let me know. Jasper kisses to all who click the button!
I’ve got a new Jasper/Bella story (very different from this, much darker) that should be up on Wednesday. But I’m only posting it on ff. I’ll put up a link on my profile if you’re interested.
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Destiny Awaits