Jasper's POV

Something was making me extremely uncomfortable. I felt myself squirming and twitching, trying to get comfortable. Nervously, I paced back and forth in the hall outside our rooms, trying to calm myself. Agitation continued to course through me as I began to wander farther and farther down the hall.

I needed to find Alice. Quickly, I stalked farther down, searching for Commander Swan's apartments. With ease, I was able to find them and I hesitated before knocking.

Edward had returned yesterday with a sleeping Bella in his arms. Commander Swan had been frantic until Edward had convinced him that she had simply fallen asleep and nothing had been wrong with her, other than a few scrapes and bruises from her multiple falls.

As much as I needed Alice's soothing embrace, I hated to disturb Bella if she was resting. Nothing had been easy for her since she'd arrived here. Alice had almost nightly visions regarding Bella; I felt as though I knew her. Finally, my fist landed on the oaken door. Thud.

Alice quickly answered the door. "Jazz! What are you doing here?"

I ran a restless hand through my hair and across my forehead. "I needed to see you; something's wrong."

Her small arms slipped about my waist, and I pulled her petite body up against mine, relishing the warmth that seeped through our clothes. "Here, you can come keep Bella company with me. She thinks I'm crazy," she whispered with a large grin. Only Alice would find that to be a compliment, never content to just be normal. And with a graceful spin she grabbed my hand and led me down the hall.

Surprisingly, my anxiety hadn't lessened upon seeing Alice. I soon discovered the reason. Bella Swan sat up in her bed with her arms crossed belligerently across her chest, a small frown marring her face, creating a crease between her brows.

"Don't do that; you'll get wrinkles," Alice instructed, walking over to the bed and using a forefinger to smooth out the groove. Bella simply frowned harder.

"I'm perfectly fine; I don't need to be kept in bed like an invalid!" I stifled a smile; someone was a difficult patient. "And don't you smirk at me, stork boy." My smile disappeared. Never mind a difficult patient, someone was downright cranky.

Alice tsked and gently patted Bella's shoulder before settling down in the chair by the bed.

"Who are you anyways," Bella grumbled, settling deeper into the bed to pout.

"Jasper Whitlock, ma'am, I'm Alice's husband." I enjoyed the expression that crossed her face as her large doe eyes darted swiftly from me to Alice and back to me.

Alice's sweet laugh tinkled out as she realized what Bella was thinking. A blush spread across Bella's pale face and neck.

"Sorry," she mumbled. "I just don't like being cooped up."

"Then you're livin' in the wrong place, darlin'," I drawled, thickening my accent.

Bella sighed, "Tell me about it."

After Bella drifted off to sleep, I turned to Alice. "What are you up to, lil' bit?" I cautiously queried. With Alice, you could never be sure. She was a little minx, always up to something.

My girl just beamed at me and went up on her tiptoes to plant a kiss against my mouth. My hands cupped her head, and her fingers tightly gripped my shoulders as the kiss intensified. Breathing harshly, I pulled away. "You're not going to distract me, Alice. What are you up to?"

"I'm simply helping fate. Giving it a little . . . push, if you will," she innocently explained, batting her large grey eyes at me.

A sigh escaped my mouth, and my hand massaged the back of my neck. "The dreams you've been having, they're about Edward and Bella, aren't they?"

She nodded. "Fuck," I sighed and remembered Alice was in the room. "Pardon my French, love."

"I love it when you talk dirty, Jazz." She grinned up at me, desire in her eyes.

"Stop that, you're supposed to be looking after Bella." Alice smiled knowingly at me before sauntering over to the chair beside Bella's bed.

Like I said, a little minx. All it took was feeling the brush of her hand on my arm or seeing her pupils dilate when she looked at me and I wanted her. I wanted her in my arms, under me, against me, simply with me. Even now, knowing she was relatively safe, I wanted her with me at all times. I wouldn't be able to live if she was ever taken from me. In the most straightforward of ways, Alice was an integral part of my existence; she made my life meaningful.

I pinned her in place with a look. "Now, what have you been seeing?"

Slowly, Alice drew in a deep breath and exhaled. Her eyes slipped closed. "I see . . . I see Edward holding Bella in his arms, looking down at her with so much love it makes my heart clench. And, I see . . . I see them sleeping together, wrapped around each other so you don't know where one begins and the other ends. And I see…" Alice's voice cracked. "I see Bella, pregnant, with Edward's arms holding her from behind, his hand gently stroking her stomach…"

Gradually, Alice returned to me. "It scares me sometimes," she whispered, "to see how much they will love each other and recognize that it's us in the present. Sometimes it scares me how much I love you and how much you love me; it scares me."

I strode over to the chair and picked Alice up before settling her in my lap. "Never be scared of our love," I firmly said to her, my hands tightly framing her elfin face. Her watery eyes locked on mine, and I pressed my lips harshly against hers. Adrenaline pumped through my body, and my usual gentleness in regards to Alice disappeared. There was nothing soft about the way I ground my mouth against hers or the way my hands clasped her lithe body to mine. Something primitive was running through me; I needed to put my mark on her, claim her as mine forever.

Alice's hands slowly calmed me down. Her fingertips whispered across my face, gently caressing it before sliding down to stoke my neck and back. I pulled back to draw in deep breaths, trying to steady my racing heart.

Her hands slid up to cup my face, and she whispered to me, "'You are me and I am you; can't you see it's a love game for two?'"

Once again, I crushed her against my body, my head pressed to the wispy spikes of her hair.

"You can go now, I'll look after her," Edward's voice cut in.

Our heads darted up and a faint blush spread across my cheeks. "Right, come on, love." I stood up and grabbed Alice's hand before striding from the room. My thoughts began to race. I had been so caught up in Alice I hadn't paid much attention to Bella. Had she overheard any of our conversation or was she really deeply asleep? Had Edward overheard anything?

A sharp tug on my arm stopped me short. I looked back to find Alice gazing solemnly at me. "Stop it, Jasper. Everything is fine. Stop worrying, everything will be all right."

"I wish I knew that, love. I wish I knew that," I murmured before continuing down the pathway.