Chapter 14

Bella had been so surprised when Jasper had kissed her. It was sweet and reverent, and she had wanted more. Jasper was a thousand times more alluring than Edward had ever been, and his power! When he projected his feelings on her it was like nothing she had ever experienced, and he hadn't even touched her.

Good lord!

Jasper was having a wonderful time. Knowing that he had that effect on Bella made him exceedingly happy, and full of himself.

"Do you need me to help you up?" Jasper teased.

"No, I'll get up in just a moment." Bella said. Her mind was running wild with thoughts. The comparison between Edward and Jasper was a drastic. It was like night and day, hell and heaven. Where Edward had struggled not to kill her, Jasper couldn't stand to feel her discomfort. This Jasper seemed to have no trouble controlling his blood lust whatsoever. Going through all that torture had made him unwilling to drink from humans, it repelled him. Edward had also broken her, hurt her, and left her. Would Jasper do the same? Could Jasper do the same? Could she love again?

She wanted to; but she had been down this road before. A human / vampire relationship could only work if the vampire was willing to change the human. Would Jasper be able to change her? He had suffered so much. Could he stand to feel her pain during the change? He could hardly deal with Bella bringing up uncomfortable subjects in conversation.

She glanced at Jasper, and noticed that his expression had gone from cocky to crestfallen. He had felt her inner turmoil and it had upset him. It was then that Bella made peace with herself and her decision. She would enjoy being with Jasper as long as she could. She wouldn't let her past hold her back. It was a different life that she had lived in another reality that didn't even exist anymore. She would take this as a fresh start, and live this as a new life. Maybe that was the whole reason for her time travel.

Jasper was waiting for Bella to calm down. He tried to figure out what had made her worry so much. The only thing he could figure was maybe he had scared her. He was a vampire after all, a vampire who was trying to court her. She must be worried that I will bite her. He thought.

"I'm alright now let's go." Bella said as she jumped down from the stump.

I'll have to stop being so pushy. Jasper thought.

As Bella reached Jasper's carvings she was awestruck and horrified at the same time. They were beautiful, and grotesque. There must have been twenty or more life-size carvings of people, and most of them looked in pain, or suffering, or sad. She felt as if she had entered a magical forest where people had been petrified into wood, that's how real they looked.

"You carved these?" Bella asked amazed.

"Yes, do you like them?" Jasper asked.

"Yes, they are beautiful Jasper, but they all seem to be in pain."

"Not this one here." Jasper pointed out a carving of a man who was laughing. "This is Peter."

"Jasper, are all these carvings of people you know?" Bella asked.

"People I knew." Jasper said as he lovingly touched a carving of a woman with a sad expression. "This is a carving of my Mother."

"Why is she sad?" Bella asked.

"This is how I remember her looking at me when I went off to war." Jasper replied. Then Jasper touched the carving of the man beside the woman. "This is my Pa." Jasper smiled softly.

"I can't tell what he's feeling." Bella wondered out loud.

"It's strength Bella, he was strong for us all." Jasper answered.

Bella looked closely at all the others. They were all men. Angry men, or suffering in some way. She was so engrossed in the faces that she tripped on a fallen log.

Jasper caught her, and sat her gently on the forest floor, smiling as if he knew a secret.

For a moment Bella was lost in Jasper's eyes. His eyes were like dark warm honey, and she was stuck.

Then she gasped as she turned around. She hadn't tripped on a log at all. It was another carving; A beautiful carving of her asleep, lying down. It was beautiful but weathered; he must have carved it long ago. Bella was shocked.

"This one is my favorite." Jasper smiled. I call it Peace.