AshesAshes, here! Hope everyone is having
a great Tuesday . . . as if that were possible. Enjoy the show!
The song for this chapter is "You" by The Pretty Reckless, and here's the link:
watch?v=pIu1Od9QOYk
Chapter 10
It's Friday night, and I'm on my way to Alice's house. Edward is out of town, and Alice, Jasper, and I have plans to veg out and watch movies. Truthfully, I feel like an intruder, but I'm still thankful for the invite. I don't really want to be alone tonight. I've never minded being alone before, but several things have me feeling uneasy these days, and I'd like to forget about all of them. Even if only for a few hours.
Edward's wedding junk, which I failed to drop by his house this week, is still in the trunk of my car. I must remember to take it to his house this weekend. My mind keeps wandering as I park in front of Alice's house, and I think about calling Ben Cheney before going in. He still hasn't given me any answers about the information I gave him to investigate, and I hate playing the waiting game. Oh, well. If I still haven't heard from him by the end of the day Monday, I'll start the nagging process then.
Grabbing the pizza boxes from the passenger seat next to me, I exit the car. Since I'm the spare tonight, I figure I might as well arrive bearing gifts. Alice opens the door before I can knock and holds it wide open.
"Finally! We're starving here," she says, giving me a wink and a hug.
Jasper takes the boxes from me and sniffs them appreciatively before setting them on the dining room table. "Mmm, I smell bacon."
"And onion, and pineapple. The other one is a meat lovers, as requested," I say. Alice makes a face at my particular brand of pizza heaven, and I open the box and grab a slice that's dripping with onions, wiggling my eyebrows at her. "Want some?"
"That is disgusting. You keep that trash away from me," she says, pulling a slice of meaty goodness onto her plate. Jasper gets us each a beer, and we bring our feast to the living room.
"And what did you bring for our viewing pleasure?" Alice asks me, popping a piece of ham into her mouth.
I dig the movie out of my purse—the closest one I could reach on my way out the door—and she makes a face. "Bella, The Big Lebowski is not an eighties movie. We're doing eighties movies tonight, remember?"
"Sorry, I must have missed that part," I say around a mouthful of pizza. I swallow and shrug. "It's still a good movie."
Jasper snatches the case from her hand. "Yeah, it is. Baby, let's watch this one. Please?" He looks at Alice with wide blue eyes, and she can't even pretend to resist.
"Oh, fine. We'll watch Lebowski." She squeals and pushes Jasper away when he plasters her cheek with kisses, leaving pizza sauce in his wake.
After watching The Dude abide, we pop in Alice's movie choice next. I must've passed out somewhere in the middle of Lost Boys, because I wake up freezing cold. Alice is asleep next to me, hogging all the throw blankets, and I notice the door to the balcony is half-open.
I wrestle away one of the throws without waking her and wrap it around my shoulders, heading outside. Jasper is leaning against the railing, taking in the view of the Sound, and I smell a trace of cigar. "I didn't know you smoked," I say quietly, stepping up to the railing beside him.
He turns, surprised to see me, and smiles as he butts it out. "Not regularly. Sorry if it bothers you," he says.
"It doesn't. Besides, you do what you want. I'm the intruder here tonight. Sorry for crashing your Friday night, by the way."
Jasper gives me the lazy half-smile I've grown accustom to. "You're no intruder, Bella. I like hanging out with you. Truthfully, I'm glad Alice has a friend like you—someone a little more grounded than she is. She needs that."
"Well, someone has to be the grown up," I say with a soft smirk. Jasper chuckles and takes a swig of beer as I study his profile. "You really do like her, don't you?"
He sets his beer on the wide wooden rail and is silent for a moment, contemplative. When he turns to me, his eyes are more serious than I've ever seen them before. "It's more than that, Bella. It's—"
He pauses, and my heart is pounding. "It's what?"
"I don't know. It's only been a few weeks, but what I feel for Alice is . . ." He looks at me, and I can see the conflict inside. "You know I'm recently divorced, right?"
Oh, right. "Yeah, Edward mentioned it. How long were you married?"
"Just under two years."
"Wow. And how long have you been divorced?"
He shakes his head. "Not long enough to feel like this, I don't think." After a beat, Jasper puts his smile back on to hide his pain. "I shouldn't be talking to you like this. I'm sorry."
"You don't have to tell me anything, Jasper. I can't imagine what you've been through, but I'll tell you something. I've honestly never seen Alice as happy as she's been the past three weeks."
His eyes light up. "Really? I don't get it. She's so beautiful and fun and interesting. I feel like I'm . . . not enough for her."
"That's where you're wrong. You're all of those things. Trust me; Mary Alice Brandon doesn't waste her time on 'not enough'. She sees all those wonderful things inside of you, and I do, too, now. Who wouldn't?"
I can tell he's embarrassed, but he's quick to recover. "You calling me beautiful, Swan?"
"Oh, shut up. All I'm saying is there was a time when it wasn't looking so good for you. But you took down your walls, showed her who you really are, and that's enough, Jasper." I shrug playfully. "And maybe you're sort of handsome. Maybe."
He snorts, looking down at the railing. "Whatever you say," he mumbles, though his smile remains buoyant.
I want to keep him talking. I want to know what he thinks of Anna—if he's noticed Edward's odd demeanor. I want to pry as much information from him as I possibly can.
I am a horrible, shameless person.
"Edward seemed off last night, huh?" I say, making a sorry attempt. Jasper hums but says nothing. "Actually, he's seemed off for a while now. He's always brooding these days."
Shrugging, Jasper starts to peel the label off his bottle. "It's a scary thing . . . getting married. He looks exactly like I did before I tied the knot. Of course, I was terrified for all the wrong reasons."
I chuckle without humor. "Right." I don't know what it is I'm trying to sniff out, but I'm beginning to feel like the rat that I am. Still, I carry on. "Do you think Edward is? You know, scared for the wrong reasons, and all that?"
Jasper looks at me, deciding whether or not to let me in on the secrets I know he knows. He's analyzing me, his eyes both thoughtful and serious. Finally, he makes a decision. "Eddie's going to be all right, Bella. No matter what happens," he says quietly, resolutely.
I realize now Jasper would never betray Edward as I have. Ugh, I'm the worst. Nodding quickly, I pull the blanket tighter around me. There's movement behind us, and a very sleepy Alice is at the door.
"What are you guys doing out here? It's freezing."
"Just having a beer, darlin'. Let's go inside, and I'll put you to bed," Jasper says, and our moment is over. Following behind, I make myself useful by gathering the mess on the coffee table.
"Don't worry about that. I'll get it tomorrow," Alice says around a yawn.
I smile. "I'm already done. Besides, you know how I feel about a dirty coffee table," I say, my face stricken in mock horror.
"Weirdo," Alice mutters.
I grab my things and leave them to the rest of their night, heading out into a light drizzle. On my drive home, I think of Jasper and add "loyal" to his growing list of positive attributes. I'm glad Alice has him. Though she hasn't admitted it, I know she loves him. And now I know that Jasper loves her back. Again, he didn't say the words, but I know they were right there on the tip of his tongue.
I wonder when they'll finally figure it out for themselves. Soon, I hope.
Monday after work, I fly across town to get to Edward's house. Like a total bonehead, I forgot about dropping off his print shop stuff all weekend. He had to call me at work and ask if I'd forgotten altogether. So embarrassing.
I haul his junk out of my trunk and juggle the heavy boxes all the way up the stairs. I manage to ring the doorbell with my elbow and nearly drop everything on my toes when Anna answers the door. I don't know why it surprises me that she's here; this is her house.
"Bella, how can we help you?"
"Hi, Anna, I just wanted to bring these over. It's your stuff from the printers," I say, barely able to keep the boxes balanced. My arms are about to give out.
"Come on in." She strides coolly away, leaving me struggling. "You can leave them in the dining room."
Alone and fumbly, I cross the threshold, and Edward appears out of nowhere. "Bella! I didn't know it was you. Here, let me get those."
"Thanks," I say through my breath and rub my arms. I really need to work out more.
"I totally lost track of time," he says, setting the boxes down and ushering me into the kitchen. He's in the middle of cooking dinner, and I smile at the towel slung over his shoulder. It smells like homemade spaghetti sauce.
"So how was work?" he asks.
"Oh, you know . . . workey," I say with a shrug, wondering where Anna's run off to.
He smiles and licks a drip of sauce off his thumb. "Hope you like spaghetti. We don't have any spaghetti noodles, though, so I'm using fettuccini."
"Oh, I won't stay. I don't want to impose."
"You're always welcome here, Bella. Besides, Anna's ditching me. Some art guru is giving a lecture at the university," Edward says, his back to me, and I watch as he lifts a steaming pot of noodles and carries it to the sink.
Before I can think of a response, Anna comes into the kitchen in a rush, securing a gold hoop in her left ear. She looks stunning in a deep chocolate, off-the-shoulder sweater dress and sleek, sky-high mules. Who wears fuck-me heels to a boring old art lecture?
"Would you like some dinner before you go?" Edward asks his fiancée, holding a spoon full of sauce out for her to taste.
"Edward, please, you'll ruin my dress," Anna says, leaning away.
Edward eats the sauce himself. "Do you want me to save you a plate for later?"
Anna is a blur as she streaks around the kitchen. "Don't bother. I'm going out to dinner after the lecture."
"Oh, with who?" he asks. This is clearly news to him.
"Am I under interrogation here? Move, you're in my way," she says, reaching around him to grab her scarf.
I make myself as small as possible in my chair at the kitchen table. Edward shrugs at me behind her back. I know he's embarrassed. This is really getting uncomfortable.
"I'm going with Dr. Novak and a few of his associates to Canlis. I'll be home late," Anna says once she's finally situated.
Edward gives her a kiss on her proffered cheek. "Okay. I guess Bella and I will just keep ourselves busy folding wedding programs. Don't worry, we'll find some way to make it entertaining."
Anna throws me a quick look, as if she's forgotten I'm here, and finds it a convenient time to show her man some love. She leans into Edward and gives him a long kiss goodbye.
Again, uncomfortable.
Edward looks just as surprised as she pulls away and leaves without another glance in my direction.
When I hear the front door shut, I give Edward a tentative half-smile. "Maybe I should just go."
"Come on; don't leave me here with a huge pot of pseudo-spaghetti. You don't have to fold papers with me, but at least stay for dinner."
I can't resist his smile, and I concede. "I love pseudo-spaghetti. It was your mom's specialty, if I remember."
His grin widens. "Ah, yes. The famous Cullen family delicacy. We just never seem to have the right noodles," Edward says, shaking his head. "Come over next week, and I'll whip up some artificial-alfredo made with elbow macaroni."
I laugh at him, and just like that, the dark cloud of Anna is completely forgotten. Edward and I go right back to being, well . . . Edward and I.
Thanks for stopping by, and thank for all the love. You're a great bunch. Speaking of great, thanks go out to my beta, Alice's White Rabbit, as well as my VB, devilsgenie. They're like cake on Tuesday!
It's Tuesday, and I want cake.
What?