Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight. Or Edward – Or Robert – Damn it.

Under My Tree

APOV

I woke up before he did and adjusted my body so that I could see his marvelous face in the dusty light of the morning.

Last night had been perfect—the perfect first time, the perfect first profession of love, and the perfect way to end the perfect day. I was gushing all over the place internally, and I surprised myself to learn that I didn't feel compelled to share all the details with Bella. I wanted to keep most of our evening private—between my Jasper and I. Of course I would tell Bella and Rose that we'd finally done the deed, but I wasn't sure how much detail I'd let go. What had happened last night was sacred, and I wanted to keep it that way. Personal. Ours. Mine and Jasper's.

He stirred in his sleep, turning his face away from the light infiltrating my room through the window. I slid out of bed and closed the curtains, not wanting to disturb his slumber. Standing there naked, I stared at him for a moment before climbing back under the sheets.

I burrowed into the mattress when I got into bed, and placed a hand under my pillow as a grin formed on my lips. Without thinking, I extended my free hand toward his face, aiming to graze my forefinger along his jaw line, but I stopped just short of his skin. I wasn't quite ready to wake him yet.

I hazarded a glance at the clock and saw that it was 9:30. We still had all day, but I did want to get together with Rose and Bella at some point. We needed to gossip about what was going on with our boys. Bella had admitted to having a phenomenal time with Edward, but I could sense that she was still holding back a bit. I wanted her to come to the realization that Edward, although far from perfect, was perfect from her. I had known it the minute I met him. I breathed out through my nose and set about waking up the amazing specimen of man that was lying there in front of me.

I raised my free hand again, and this time I gently traced the outline of his jaw. Immediately, his eyelashes, long and dark despite his blonde hair, fluttered against his skin. His body wasn't ready to wake up yet.

We'd see about that.

Completely cognizant of the fact that we would both have some facet of morning breath, I shifted my body again, stopping when I was mere inches from his long, lean frame. He sighed in his sleep and then I pressed my lips to his. Softly, slowly, I kissed him and I felt his eyelashes fluttering against my cheek.

When I pulled away, his deep blue eyes were sleepy but open. "Good Morning, darlin'," he whispered. When his lips pulled into a smile, I grinned back.

"Good Morning, Mr. Whitlock."

His hand traced the curve of my bare hip. As he did so, he closed his eyes, as though he were truly reveling in the sensation of my skin under his touch. Never before had I felt as though I was being worshipped, but somehow, Jasper made me feel that way. His hands were slightly rough from the work he'd done here in Tahoe, but his caresses were gentle. His tongue was sweet, and his lips were perfect. And well … the stuff below the belt was rather amazing. "What is on the agenda today?" I asked softly.

Jasper pressed his body upwards, balancing on one elbow, while his free hand molded to my cheek. When he leaned in and kissed me, and I felt my body respond to him after mere moments. We parted, and he kissed me gently on the forehead before asking, "What time is dinner again?"

"Eight o'clock on the dot. Appropriate dinner attire, please," I replied with a laugh.

His smile shone back at me in the low light of the room. "Of course, Miss Brandon. Anything for you." He kissed me one more time and then sat up. I watched him silently as he leaned over the edge of the bed. When he was back in a seated position, he handed me his retrieval – his undershirt from the night before. "I think it'll look good on you, darlin'." I knew he was from Seattle, that one of his parents was from the South, and that he was drawing the accent out on purpose, but it didn't matter. The moment he called me darlin', I wanted him again.

I climbed into his lap. "I'll put it on later," I murmured into his skin, and then we started the night before all over again.

An hour later, he finally left my room for his. We had plans to rally our friends and I wanted to get together with Rose and Bella. Though I was sad to see Jasper go, I was excited at the prospect of getting at least a little dressed up for dinner, though I knew the real affair would be New Years Eve. The Inn had a big soiree every year and it was always a blow out. Every guest had probably heard a member of the staff orchestrating plans, signing for deliveries or generally stressing out about the upcoming festivities. Jasper had mentioned that he and Edward were glad that their internship was technically over so that they could just enjoy their evening.

I watched Jasper walk toward the elevator and when he was safely inside of it and on his way to his room, I closed my door and rang Bella's suite. I could hear the television on in the background. "Good Morning, Bells," I said before she had a chance to answer.

"Alice! Good Morning!" she said, unusually chipper for the morning … and for Bella 'morning' was anytime before noon.

I giggled. "So, we need to play catch up. How about you call Rose and we order brunch to your room and gossip for a few hours?"

"Sounds like a plan. I'll call Rose now. Come on over when you're ready," she said.

I hung the phone up and then jumped in the shower. There was a stupid, silly part of me that pouted over washing the scent of my Jasper from my skin, but I knew we would be together again tonight, so I shook it off.

I lathered the shampoo and conditioner through my hair and rinsed my body off. As the warm water flowed down my back, I reveled in it – it felt like the best massage. Then, I let the water cleanse my hair, ran my razor over my legs and stepped out of the shower.

I put on a simple outfit of a bright blue shirt that hung to mid thigh paired with black leggings. I cinched a silver belt over the narrowest part of my waist and slipped on my black ballet flats, before grabbing my room key and walking over to Bella's.

The room service delivery arrived just as I did. I knocked and we walked in together.

He set up the plates and silverware, and when Bella tried to pay him a tip, he shook his head and held up his hand to stop her. "This room has been to be added to the tab of Mister Edward Cullen. Are you here with him, ma'am?" he asked, in a heavy accent.

"I … Well …" Bella said, stumbling over her words.

"Yes, we're here with him. Thank you!" I answered for her, and as he left the room Rose appeared in the hallway.

As she stepped into Bella's suite, she grinned at the spread, then at us. "What's up, bitches?"

I folded my arms across my chest. "Have you tried to charge anything to your room?" I asked. She shook her head. "Looks like Edward added Bella's room to his and Jasper's account here, which means they're going to comp everything!"

Rose's eyes lit up. "Are you serious? I wonder if …"

I knew what she was thinking. "We should try to order something to our rooms later to see if we've been added."

Bella spoke up quickly. "I've … I've gotta call Edward and thank him. Hold on guys," she said. Rose and I talked quietly enough that we could hear her on the line. "Hey … So, I just had brunch delivered and the bellhop told me it was put on your tab. Yeah … You really didn't have to do that … I … Sure, I'll let them know. Oh, well thank you, Edward. Did Jasper tell you about dinner? …. Yes, ok. I'll see you then." She hung up and turned back to us with a quiet grin on her face. It was a grin I hadn't seen in years.

"You have news for us?" Rose grinned.

Bella nodded. "They added all the food and drink charges for our rooms to the guy's tab. Looks like all we're going to have to pay for is the actual cost of the room." A broad smile filled her face and something told me it was about more than the free food. So, I asked my next question cautiously.

"Bella?" I began. "Did something happen with Edward?"

She sighed then, and fell across her mattress. A light giggle escaped her lips and I watched her in awe. Bella did not giggle. Bella was not prone to girly, giddy responses. Bella was acting … a whole lot like me.

"Let's get some food first and then I'll fill you both in." We all stood around the room service cart and loaded up our plates with pancakes, fruits, sausage and toast with jam. Then, I poured the three of us something to drink and we got situated on Bella's bed. I couldn't help but notice we were all in a little triangle, as if we were twelve again and at a sleepover.

We'd all started eating when Rose broke the silence. "Oh, come on, Bella, spill!" Her beautiful smile spread across the bottom half of her face.

Bella put her plate on the bed in front of her. "Ok, ok. So, the other night Edward shows up at my door, right? And he surprised the shit out of me, because I hadn't seen him since that disastrous night at the bar. So he asks me to spend the evening with him. I knew you two were probably busy with Emmett and Jasper …. And ok, I'll admit it, Edward is …" She looked up at the ceiling with only her eyes. "He's gorgeous," she said as she brought her eyes back to us.

"And you guys got off on kind of the wrong foot," I said.

She nodded. "Yes. I ended up apologizing for being a bitch and he said he really didn't mean to let me fall … But anyway, so …" She grinned and as she paused for breath, I exchanged a knowing glance with Rose, who simply arched one perfect eyebrow at me as Bella continued.

"We go to the café and it's like, fucking phenomenal. We get wings and beer and then, he asks me if I want to go to the employee lounge … which just happens to be across the hall from the penthouses. It was amazing. The view was just gorgeous …"

Rose cut in then, a broad smile on her face. "You mean the view, right? Or do you mean Edward?"

We all dissolved into laugher then and I realized that it had been some kind of fate that we'd met Rose on this trip. She fit right into Bella's and my life. It was as if she was meant to be there, the third strand in the rope of our friendship.

When we all caught our breath, Bella responded. "Both, actually" she said, then paused. "Anyway, he … he told me some things about his past and apologized really profusely again."

I narrowed my eyes at her. "And then?" Bella had only given me sparse detail about her evening with Edward. It was safe to say that my anticipation was killing me.

The grin appeared again on her face and I realized, again, how glad I was to see it. She took a breath, and when she spoke her voice was quieter. "And then he said I was beautiful, that I was the first girl he's thought seriously about in a year … and then he kissed me."

Rose's eyes nearly bulged out of her head and before I knew what I was doing, I squealed. "Oh my God, Bella. Tell us. It was amazing, right? Tell us!" For some reason, I had had a feeling that things had moved beyond friendship with my and Jasper's best friends that night. I was glad to hear her confirm it.

She leaned back into the pillows and smiled. "Definitely amazing. He walked me back and yesterday, he slipped this note under my door." Bella produced a folded piece of the Inn's stationary and I opened it to read it aloud.

"Bella, last night was amazing. Thank you for spending it with me. Edward."

I looked over the paper at Bella. "That was really nice of him," I said. She nodded and I could see she was not ready to discuss anything more in depth, so I gave her the "Alice knows" look, and changed the subject. "So what's new with you and Emmett, Rose?" I speared a bite of my pancake and wiggled my eyebrows.

Rose's eyes fluttered closed then and she sighed contentedly. "Oh, you mean besides him absolutely fucking worshipping me the other night? My god, it was amazing." She looked serious then and swallowed. "We'll see what happens."

I got the feeling Rosalie was hiding something, but I knew better than to push for it. We were new to her, and I would let her open up to us in her own time.

Bella spoke up then. "So, Alice? What's the latest with Jasper?" She popped a blueberry in her mouth.

I smiled. "He's the most amazing man on the planet and I'm head over heels in love with him," I replied as I took a sip of my orange juice. I looked from Bella to Rosalie. "And we slept together last night. And it was perfect."

The rest of the morning went that way, with the three of us going back and forth. It felt as though Bella and I had known Rose for years instead of weeks Conversation flowed naturally. By the time I looked at the clock again, it was somehow four in the afternoon. The day had flown by, and it was just another sign that Rosalie Hale was meant to be in my and Bella's life.

After a while, we grew quiet, and Bella turned her television on to order a movie. We were all in a happy, contented daze and had about an hour before we'd all return to our rooms to shower, so Bella ordered several SNL's digital shorts on demand and we sat around, laughing the minutes away.

I had to admit, I hardly noticed the hilarity that was Andy Samberg and Justin Timberlake's "Dick in a Box" skit, because my mind was on a certain blonde haired, blue eyed man who was elsewhere in the hotel. I'd had a crush on Justin for years regardless of what Bella said about him, and as I sat there, musing on the man whom I knew would be in my life for as far into the future as I could see, I realized JT could and would never hold a candle to Jasper. My Jasper …

"Well, girls," Rose said, clearing her throat. "I'm going to go shower. Should we meet back up in half an hour?" She stood and stretched her arms above her head.

I nodded. "My room?" As I looked from Rose to Bella, they both grinned and I finished my thought. "Sounds perfect." I hopped up from my place on Bella's bed, gathered the plates that still sat on her mattress and placed them on the silver room service cart. "I'll see you guys soon!" I smiled at them and then left the room with Rose on my heels.

The plan was to return to my room to get ready—to do our hair, make up and get dressed—and then meet up with the guys in the party room. I was blow drying my hair when they arrived, both at the same time. After I'd dried off, I had spread all of my make up out over the bathroom counter and was prepared to battle with Bella about wearing at least a little something, given that it was Christmas.

When Rose and Bella came in, I assessed their appearance. They both looked great in jeans and cute tops. I decided I wouldn't freak out about the fact that Bella was wearing her Chucks. No one would see her feet under the table anyway. "Ladies, come see my plethora of make up and accessories!" I gestured to the counter like Vanna White on Wheel of Fortune and grinned.

Rose grabbed a necklace and asked if I minded if she borrowed it for the evening. Of course I didn't. I looked at Bella as she eyed some of my lip glosses critically and had to do a double take. "Bella Swan! Are you wearing mascara?"

She shifted her eyes to me. "I am a girl, Alice. It happens."

"Not often," I replied with a smirk. I ran my eyes over the detailing in her shirt and plucked a pair of earrings from the counter. "Here. Wear these." Then, I handed her the perfect gloss for her skin tone. "And this."

To my surprise, she put both the earrings and the make up on without a fight. Yes, something was definitely going on with my best friend.

I put the finishing touches on my make up and hair, and then slipped my shoes on. I grabbed my room key and the three of us walked into the hallway and toward the elevator. When the door opened, I was surprised to see Edward standing in the elevator. The smile appeared on his face in the instant that he saw Bella. "Hey," he said, simply.

"Hey," Bella replied quietly and moved to stand near him.

"Hey Edward!" I began. "Are Jazz and Emmett already downstairs?"

He nodded. "I believe so. Em called me earlier and said he was pretty sure if we were late, you'd kill us." He winked at me then, but I kept a serious face.

"Well, Emmett would be right. And if I killed you guys, that would kind of suck for my best friend, my new friend, and me. So I'm glad you're all on time," I finished with a smile.

He laughed lightly and looked at Rose. "How are you?" he asked.

"I'm great," she said, grinning at him. "Looking forward to dinner."

We all made small talk in the elevator until it reached the ground floor. When the door opened, we all saw Jasper and Emmett standing there, just outside of the lift as though they had been waiting for Edward. I noticed with a quiet smile that we all coupled off without meaning to. Edward and Bella exited the lift together, I walked straight up to Jasper and grabbed his hand, and Rose seemed to naturally gravitate towards Emmett.

"Shall we?" I asked as I gestured toward the party room.

"We shall," Emmett smiled. "Rosalie?" He held his elbow out to her, and she nodded once with a smile before lacing her arm with his. Edward let Bella lead him into the room and we all took a seat at the round table in the center of the small area.

I noted with satisfaction that the room was not overly decorated for the holiday. There were simply accents throughout the space that hinted at Christmas. The table was covered with a deep red cloth and matching accents, and there was a single garland looped from the ceiling around the walls. An opulently decorated Christmas tree stood in one corner by an electric fireplace, and there were candles everywhere, which provided a glorious soft light throughout the room.

"Remind me to commend the Mountain View Inn's decorators," I said to no one in particular.

Jasper spoke up. "Sure thing."

The waiter arrived then. "Hey Jazz … Edward." He looked around the table at the rest of us, whom he did not know. "My name is Embry and I'll be taking care of you this evening. We're serving a three course meal. You'll have the option of several main courses and a few sides, all of which are outlined on the menus that are before you on the table. If you know what you'd like to drink with your dinner, I'll get started on that right now."

We made our drink orders and Embry scurried away. After some lively discussion about what we should order for appetizers—Bella suggested wings and I almost had to throw my napkin at her, and then at Edward when he said wings sounded fantastic—we placed our order with Embry for the entire meal.

"So, everybody," I said as I cocked one eyebrow. "What's your dream vacation spot?" I asked it despite the fact that I knew what both Jasper and Bella would say. "Mine is Italy. I mean, hello. Milan is like a shopper's heaven. Versace! Dolce & Gabbana! Roberto Cavalli! Oh my!" Rose laughed with me when I finished. "OK, so I don't really know if they're all located in Milan, but I'll bet I could find their stores there."

Emmett answered next. "I'd have to say the Caribbean. I've actually never been, and I'd like nothing more than to spend my whole day sitting on the beach with a beer and the sun. That would be the shit right there."

"The Caribbean would be cool," Edward agreed with his brother. "But I think I'd say Greece. I mean, it's fucking beautiful there and I don't know… It's sort of removed from everything else. So I feel like it would be real peaceful and quiet, and you could sort of disappear there, you know?"

I nodded in approval. What they didn't all know was that I was filing all this information away for other group vacations. "Jazz?"

"Costa Rica, hands down. Me, a tent, and a couple friends who are willing to rough it a little bit and I'm golden." He smiled at me, knowing that this was a topic we'd discussed on our absolutely amazing, wonderfully perfect first date, when I'd been severely underdressed for the weather.

Rose sipped her water tentatively. "Paris. It's the city of lights, right? Who doesn't want to visit there?" She took another sip of her water as Embry returned with our appetizers. He placed them on our table, asked if we needed anything and then promptly disappeared. Rose looked at Bella with interest. "What about you, Bella?"

Bella placed her right elbow on the table and leaned on her hand. A serene smile appeared on her face. "New York. It's so crowded you can just blend in there and go about your business, whether it's people watching or shopping or just … whatever. It would be really fucking great to just be one of the masses for a little while."

I smiled as I realized that although they'd listed completely different destinations, Edward and Bella's answers were very much like each other's. They both wanted to go somewhere that would allow them to slip into relative anonymity. It was just another sign, if you asked me, that pointed to the fact that they were going to be perfect together.

I raised my glass. After everyone else's was suspended above the table like mine, I cleared my throat. "So everybody," I began. "I just wanted to say that I'm so glad that Bella and I decided to come on this little vacation. As it turns out, it was an excellent idea on my part," I laughed as I paused. "I'm so glad we've all met, that we're celebrating the holiday together and that we get to continue this awesome group back home in Washington! Merry Christmas!"

"Cheers," Jasper said next to me, as he squeezed my leg under the table. All of our glasses clinked together and conversation ebbed and flowed naturally. That was the way the rest of the evening went. As a group, we all agreed to get together for the New Year's Party the Inn would have in a few days. We all talked together about whatever came up, and before I knew it, Embry had returned to us to announce that his shift was ending and that if we would be staying much longer, he would introduce us to a new member of the wait staff who could serve us for the remainder of the evening.

We all stood after Emmett had confirmed with him that we were ready to leave, and said our goodbyes. Jasper held my hand as we stepped into the elevator. "Do you want to come to my room tonight, Alice?" he asked quietly.

I smiled brightly up at him. "Sure. Let's stop by room for some pajamas and my toothbrush."

After stopping my room, we made our way to Jasper's. When we got there, I washed my face and brushed my teeth, then I fluffed my hair with my hands. I was standing in the bathroom when I noticed Jasper was seated in the chair in the main part of his room, staring at me with an odd look on his face. "I'll be right out," I said as I closed the door. I changed quickly into my PJs—silk pajama pants and a solid black tank top—before walking back out to him. "What's going on, Jazz?"

"Um. So … Alice. Uh … Have a seat," he said. I had no idea why he was so nervous, but I did as he asked and took a seat on his bed. I looked up and waited for him to continue.

Jasper shuffled across the room then and sat a few feet from me on the bed. I just looked at him and waited for him to continue.

"So, Alice," he said again. A small grin turned one corner of my mouth up. When Jasper was nervous, it was so damn adorable. "Um, I really don't want this to seem … I don't know, weird or something but I saw them, and I saw you looking… I thought it would be a good idea, and then I went into town and …" His voice trailed away, effectively ending the rambling he was doing. He was rooting around in the pocket of the jacket he'd brought with him to dinner that was lying in his lap.

"Jasper, honey? Go on, please," I requested in a quiet voice.

He took a shaky breath. I couldn't imagine what was making him so nervous. "Alice, I got you a Christmas gift," he said as he started to hand me something. I don't know if he dropped it because he was nervous, or if it slipped out of his hand, but I thought I saw a slight blush creep onto his cheeks when the small purple box fell to the mattress.

I smiled at him and picked up the box.

A shock of realization hit me then. No way. No way did he go back and get the earrings. If he had, he was more perfect that I had originally thought.

I held the little box in one hand and flipped it open with the other. There, looking up at me from the tiny box, were the earrings I'd fallen in love with from the Poe Rava Gem Company, where he and I had been window shopping.

I felt my jaw fall open and heard my intake of breath. I looked at him, wide-eyed, and squealed as I somehow managed to launch myself at him, the box still in my right hand. I wrapped my arms around his neck and said, "Jasper! Oh, they're gorgeous! Thank you so much! You are so wonderful!"

I felt his lips curve into a smile against the skin of my neck. "It's not too much then?"

I pulled away just enough that I could look him in the eye. "Jasper," I said resolutely. "I love you. Nothing will ever be too much for you and me, I promise." I kissed him on the lips then. "Hell, when we get back to Seattle, you can move in with Bella and I if you wanted." I was riding on the "Oh my stars, I just got a fabulous gift from my fabulous boyfriend" high, and hadn't meant for that to come up quite yet, but once it was out, I instantly felt ok about saying it.

Jasper looked at me, genuinely surprised. "You want me to move in with you Alice?"

I nodded. "I do," I said.

"Well, we'll see about that," Jasper replied with a quiet grin.

I scooted away from him and removed my earrings and replaced them with the ones he'd just given me. "What do you think?" I asked, doing my best Tinkerbell pose, with my hands out flat at my sides and my eyes angled toward the ceiling.

Jasper grinned as he stood up. "Absolutely beautiful," he said. "I'm gonna change. Why don't you crawl into bed?"

I took the earrings out and placed them back in their box, placing them on the nightstand along with the pair I had worn to dinner. Before I knew it, Jasper was back and lying next to me in a t-shirt and boxers. I reached over and turned the lamp off before settling against his chest. He wrapped his arms around me and just held me, and that was how we fell asleep. The last recollection I have from that night is the musky scent of Jasper filling my nose.

God, I love this man, I thought, as I finally drifted off to sleep.

A/N: AHelm. We're baaaaaack!

Yay for a cute, nervous Jazz! And for those of you clamoring for more ExB: don't forget that this story is about all three couples. Everything will be resolved in time, my pretties.

Oh, and yes, the chapter title is an NSYNC song. Shut up, it works for Jazz and Alice.

Reviews make me squee like Rob Pattinson. OK, it's not remotely the same, but you get the point.