Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight, and now that Netflix has the movie on its livestream options, I had to watch it again, and seriously, someone remake that thing!
We're going to skip along the next few months of our character's lives because I'm not going to write a lengthy novel full of mindless filler just to cover every moment in the timeline, and I just don't think their stories would be tied up all neat and pretty in a space of a few weeks.
***** Chapter 20: As Days Go By *****
Jasper walked into the front door of the new town house, his eyes scanning the open floor plan from left to right, taking in the cold modern furniture and lack of color on the walls or anywhere else.
White, everything is white. Check that, everything is white or chrome. Who think's this sterile environment is good for raising a child?
"Welcome home!" A sing song voice trills from behind, followed by a quick kiss on the cheek as Alice made her way into the stark living space.
Never mind, I know exactly who picked this crap out.
Jasper threw his jacket down onto the couch, the warm russet-hued leather a stark contrast jumping out from the colorless furniture. With a sigh, he made his way back out to the moving truck to begin transferring boxes into his new "home."
*** One month later ***
"So….how are things going with you?" Angela eyed her friend wearily over her salad plate, watching the brunette stab aimlessly at the mixed greens.
Bella looked up to meet Angela's concerned stare, "Things are fine, Ang, really. The girls and I are settled into our new home. The small cottage is lovely and very warm and welcoming. We've even added a new addition to the family, a young shepherd mix we adopted from the pound. The girls named him Bert. Edward got an apartment close to campus and has buried himself in research work, though he is really great about stepping back and taking time with the girls when it's their scheduled visits. We're all adjusting into our new life about as well as I could hope."
Angela arched an eyebrow before replying, "That is not what I meant, Bells, and you know it. It's been a month since Jasper left and for someone who was so deeply in love with the man, you've barely mentioned his name other than to say that he's been forwarding letters from Claire to you and the girls."
Bella straightened her posture, took a long pull from her glass of Merlot and looked at her best friend for a few moments before answering the original question, "He left, Angela. I gave him the choice, the same choice that had always been there from day one – try and make a life with me or try and salvage things with your wife, and he chose Alice. I understand his reasons completely, and yet, it ripped my heart out to see him walk away. But the hemorrhaging has slowed down to a slow bleed, and I'm trying to move past the hurt. What would you rather I do? Curl up into a catatonic ball, staring out my window as the seasons change? I think more of myself and my life than that. In fact, I'm taking the steps I need to put Jasper and I into the past."
Her interest piqued, Angela questioned, "Oh really? And, just what kind of steps are those?"
"Well, you know I've been taking some writing classes, and I've decided to put our story down onto paper. What better way to bid a fond farewell than to relive everything one more time? Maybe if I can write it all out, I can let go of the recurring thoughts and reliving the moments that are all captured like pictures frozen in time. And, you know what they say – write what you know."
"Can I read it? When you've finished, that is."
"Sure. I can't promise it will be anything worth reading, but it's your time," Bella shrugged a shoulder and went back to pushing her food around, "Now, no more about me. Tell me how the adoption process is going."
Angela's face immediately lit up, and Bella was able to force back the tousled blonde hair and blue eyes that haunted her evenings as her friend excitedly shared about gathering dossier paperwork, and the next step to bringing their daughter home.
*** Two months later ***
Jasper rolled his shoulders, sitting up from the drafting table and taking a sip of his room temperature coffee, looking over the building design he was currently working on for the firm. No matter how much he tried to move the rooms around, he just couldn't find a fit that flowed with the layout of the old warehouse his client was moving their office into. Rubbing his dry eyes, he contemplated calling it a night, thinking that maybe he just needed to step away from the plans and come back at it with a fresh perspective in the morning.
From the right, he could hear someone clearing their throat, trying to get his attention. Pulling his gaze away from the papers on the table, he looked up at the source of the noise to find Alice standing in the doorway dressed in a very see through black bra and panty set, complete with garter and thigh high hosiery, ending in a pair of six-inch-high red heels.
"Don't you think it's about time you called it a night? I'm so very lonely in our room," Alice tried to drop her voice into a seductive purr, "Maybe you could come keep me company?"
Jasper's body instinctively reacted to the exposed flesh, and he rose from his chair, crossing the room to stand in front of Alice, staring down at her while his hand rose and pinched down on one pebbled nipple. Her breath shortened as he lifted her up and carried her back to their room, losing himself in her body, never quite kissing her fully but barely letting his lips touch hers, always keeping his eyes closed, and a set of deep brown eyes in his mind's eye. If Alice noticed, she didn't make it obvious, but merely dug her nails into Jasper's back a little harder as he pushed his body into hers again and again.
*** Four months later ***
"This is really good, Bella." Angela threw the manuscript down on the coffee table before taking a seat at the other end of the couch from Bella.
It was one of their shared Saturday mornings, and today's topic of discussion was the story that Bella had handed over to Angela the week before.
"I think you love me so much that your critique may be a little biased, " Bella giggled at her friend, "but, I'm glad I could entertain you for a little while."
"I'm serious, Bella. I stayed up all night till I made it to the end. Ben kicked me out of our room, said my bedside lamp was keeping him from achieving his needed seven hours of sleep." Angela looked over at Bella sheepishly, "And, I'm not the only one who thinks it's good."
"What do you mean, Ang? Did Ben read it?" Bella's cheeks flushed scarlet.
"Well, I gave it to one of the girls at the office to read, you know, to see if she agreed with my conclusion. One of the other girls heard us discussing it, and then she demanded we share…."
"Angela, just how many people did you let read it?" Bella's voice rose with the question.
"Six?"
"Six! Angela, this was just something I needed to do, I didn't intend it to share it with the world."
Angela put down her coffee, "Well, maybe you should. We all loved it, and we agreed, we'd have put forth the money to purchase it at any bookstore. Sweetie, you've got talent. I'm sorry if I upset you by letting someone else read it, but I hope you'll forgive me. I just want to encourage you that I think you're onto something here."
"Where would I go with it?"
"Bella, I'm fairly certain that Seattle has a publishing company or two. Have you looked into trying to submit your work?"
"I don't know, Ang…." Bella chewed on a fingernail, a nervous habit she could never let go of.
Angela pulled Bella's hand down, "You don't have to decide today, Bella. No one's holding a gun to your head. Just give it some thought, okay?"
*** Six months later ***
Jasper turned the key in his front door, letting himself into the still uncomfortable townhouse, his mind focused on getting the plans he had left behind in his home office that morning. He heard varied sounds coming from the dining room, and rounded the corner of the doorway to find Alice naked and bent over the long black table, breasts bouncing with every thrust she was receiving from the man behind her.
"Fuck, yes, Grant, harder!"
Jasper leaned against the doorframe, waiting for one of the two to notice his presence. He shifted slightly, and the man currently screwing his wife froze in place, hands dug into Alice's hips, not breaking the connection with her body.
"Hey, man…" the man named "Grant" finally planted a leering grin on his face, "Want to join us? Might be interesting to mix things up a bit."
"Don't pay him any attention, Grant," Alice fixed a nasty smile on her own face, "He's too busy pining over his "mistress" to fuck me properly. I'm sure he couldn't handle the competition of having you in the room."
"Grant is it? I'll have to decline your invitation, but please feel free to continue as if I wasn't here," Jasper reached into his pocket and removed his phone, taking several pictures of his wife and her lover, "Smile pretty for the camera, Alice. You know, you were the one who was so excited about moving to Texas, and seeing as how they do take fault into account, I'm sure the Judge will love looking over these pictures. Let me know if you decide to hire an attorney, I'll have my lawyer send the papers directly to them."
Grant had decided to take Jasper up on his offer, and tried moving his hips again, but Alice pushed him backwards, smacking at his hands, and grabbing the expensive crystal vase on the table, she hurled it at the now empty doorway while letting out an ear-piercing shriek of anger.
Jasper gathered the plans he needed and headed back out to his truck, phone in hand, placing a call to his local attorney to let him know that they could move forward with the divorce papers that had already been drafted several weeks earlier when he realized Alice was sleeping around behind his back again.
*** Seven months later ***
Bella deliberately slowed her breathing as she made her way across the lobby of the downtown Seattle high-rise. She had a ten o'clock appointment with a literary agent, the product of connections that Carlisle had through one of his patients. In her mind, Bella had dismissed the thing as a done deal, having very little faith that anyone would be interested in her writing, but on the other hand, a small part of her held onto hope that maybe this was her chance.
She briefly closed her eyes, taking a moment to collect herself and continued to move forward right into someone very broad and very tall. His size gave him quite the amount of forward momentum and Bella lost her footing in the collision. Trying to keep her balance without falling to the ground, she dropped the oversized bag she had been carrying, spilling her manuscript out onto the floor along with her phone and various other belongings.
Strong hands grabbed her arms and righted her toppling form, and Bella glanced up into long-lashed brown eyes so dark they were almost completely black.
"I'm so sorry, I wasn't watching where I was going," Bella apologized to the sophisticatedly dressed gentleman with ebony hair and tanned skin holding onto her, thinking he possessed a rather European look.
"I think it was a little bit of both of us, miss. I completely steam rolled you because I wasn't paying attention myself." His brilliant smile lit up his features, giving him warmth that must draw everyone around him in like moths to an open flame, "Here, let me help you gather your things."
Bending down, the stranger picked up Bella's book first, glancing at the cover, "Are you a writer? Here for an appointment?"
"Well, my friends seem to think I'm a writer, but I'm not so sure. They've pushed me out the door of my safe little home office into meeting with an agent," Bella gathered her other things without meeting his gaze.
When she was standing again and trying to avoid those sexy eyes, the man held his hand out, "I didn't introduce myself, Garret Donovan."
"Of Donovan Publishing?" Bella blanched.
"The one and the same, I know the name sounds Irish, but my mother's Italian heritage tends to take over the gene pool." Garrett winked at Bella and gave her that million dollar smile again while Bella blushed, "And you are…?"
"Oh, I'm sorry! Bella Cullen," Bella quickly took the hand that had been left hanging in mid-air and felt her tiny fingers enveloped in his larger grasp, "I'm actually meeting with Lance Michaelson from your firm."
"Ah, Lance," grin still in place, Garrett offered his arm, Bella's story still firmly held in his other hand, "Please, Ms. Cullen, allow me the pleasure of escorting you to your appointment. I happen to know exactly where you're going."
"It's just Bella, and that would be lovely. Thank you." Bella placed her hand in the crook of Garrett's arm and followed his lead towards a bank of elevators, "Are you always so welcoming?"
"No, most of the time, I'm running from one meeting to the next, obviously not paying enough attention to my surroundings. But, one should never overlook such beauty when it is placed in front of him."
Bella tried to hide her blushing smile at his compliment and looked down at the floor as Garrett pressed a button and the doors to the cozy space they shared closed.
*** Eight months later ***
Jasper sat in the uncomfortable chair next to his attorney, waiting for the Judge to reveal his ruling in regards to the custody of Claire.
Having viewed the pictures that Jasper's attorney entered as evidence, the Judge had ruled that Jasper had every right to a divorce and that Alice would not be entitled to any type of monthly maintenance or any part of Jasper's savings. While she had kept herself tightly contained during that particular hearing, Alice had done anything and everything she could to get back at Jasper the one way she had remaining – Claire. Petitioning for full custody, Alice poured on the waterworks during her testimony at the hearing, saying how Claire was the one thing she had done right in her life and that her "darling princess" meant everything to her. Jasper wanted to yell that her words were complete and utter bullshit, but bit down on his tongue until he tasted blood and snapped the pencil he had been holding in half.
"Mr. Cullen, Mrs. Cullen, counsel…while I realize that the relationship between the two parties has broken down, and there has been substantiated evidence in regards to the Respondent's infidelity, we are not here to discuss the continued relationship between the two of you. Today, we're here to decide what is best for Claire," the Judge continued, "I believe that children thrive best when they have two parents to nurture, love and teach them as they grow. Traditionally, we would expect the parents and child to live in the same home, but we know that sometimes that isn't possible."
"However, just because mom and dad can no longer get along, that does not mean a child should be deprived of both parents. In this case, neither side has been able to present evidence that would show any threat of abuse or neglect to Claire's wellbeing. That being said, I have decided to grant the parties joint legal custody, and joint time-sharing."
"Following the 3-2-2 schedule, Jasper and Alice will divide parenting time in half, with each getting 50% of the time with the child. Seeing as Claire will be living with you both equally, and there has not been a great disparity of income between the two of you, I am not awarding either party child support at this time. However, I will rule that Jasper will continue to carry the child on his health insurance, that he will be responsible for Claire's child care expenses, and that the parties will divide any other extraordinary medical expenses 50/50. In six months, we will revisit this arrangement, and at that time, the parties may produce any evidence they have in regards to changes that need to be made."
"I will have the clerk calendar that hearing and send notice to counsel of the date and time. It is my hope that the two of you can look past the animosity you obviously have for one another and learn to work together for the good of your daughter. That will be all."
The Judge rose from the bench and left the courtroom. Jasper's shoulders slumped forward. While he hadn't lost Claire completely, he just couldn't push past the feeling that Alice would pay little attention to their daughter when it was her time, and that she had just used Claire as a way to get revenge for not getting the money she thought was owed her from being married to him.
Jasper shook hands with his attorney, gathered his things, and made his way out to the parking lot to pick up Claire. Having learned that she wouldn't be getting any child support either, Alice had been more than willing to let Jasper have time with their little girl first.
"I'll take her to daycare on Thursday morning, and you can pick her up in the afternoon. If you'd like, you can keep her with you till Monday, and we can start our set schedule then." Jasper tried talking with Alice who was busy typing out text messages to an unknown recipient.
"Fine, fine, Jasper, whatever makes you happy, since you are the only one that seems to matter in this whole thing." Alice huffed before turning on her heel and stomping out of the courthouse.
*** Nine months later ***
"Oh my God!" Bella ran her fingers over the smooth glossy paper that had a picture of a woman's hand writing a letter on one half and seductive headshot of Bella on the other, "Is this for real?"
Garrett came up behind the brunette, placing his arms around her and peering over her shoulder, "Do you like it? I think the picture is tasteful yet sexy, just enough naughty minx to grab people's attention."
Bella bounced slightly in his hold, "Is this really happening? Am I really publishing a book?"
"Well technically, darling, I'm publishing the book, but yes, it's off to print tomorrow and we'll begin planning your release party. Happy?"
Bella turned around, burying her face into Garrett's chest and squeezing him tightly, "What would I have done without you?"
Across the office space, Lance was pouring them each a glass of champagne, "Bella, dear, when will you have a little faith in yourself? You would have entered that office and charmed me at that appointment, even without that giant mountain of an escort."
The trio shared a toast to her new adventure in the world of literature. Garrett and Lance started bouncing party ideas for the book's release back and forth, but Bella was lost in the cover design of her first book, a small smile on her face and excitement coursing through her veins.
*** Ten months later ***
Jasper had fallen asleep on his couch, and had barely made sense of his surroundings when he realized his phone was ringing. Wiping sleep from his eyes, he answered the unknown number with a groggy, "Hello?"
"Mr. Cullen? Is this Jasper Cullen?"
"Yes, it is, who is this?" Jasper looked at the clock on the wall, realizing that the hour was just past midnight. A sick feeling started to form in the pit of his stomach.
"Mr. Cullen, this is Officer Black with the Houston Police. There's been an accident, sir, and your wife was driving…"
"Ex-wife," Jasper interrupted.
"Excuse me?"
"Alice is my ex-wife, we're divorced."
"Oh, yes, well, it seems Ms. Cullen was drinking and she lost control of the vehicle, she left the roadway and hit a tree. She's been taken to St. Joseph Medical Center with your daughter."
"What?! Oh my God, are they okay? She had Claire in the car with her? It was her weekend to have visitation with Claire. What the fuck was she thinking? " Jasper jumped up from his couch and started to search for his keys as he babbled into the cell phone.
"Sir, calm down, your daughter appeared unharmed; the EMTs just wanted her to get a thorough check before releasing her. Now, Ms. Cullen sustained what appeared to be minor injuries, and of course, she'll be facing charges for drinking and driving, endangering a minor…"
Jasper had already made his way to his truck and had started the engine, "You said St. Joseph?"
"Yes, sir. The Cabinet worker will meet you there in the emergency room. There shouldn't be a problem taking Claire home, but they'll need to file a report regarding Ms. Cullen's actions."
"I understand. I'm on my way now."
The Officer ended the call, and Jasper tried his hardest not to run every light in trying to get to his baby girl.
*** The Following Day ***
Bella sat across from Esme in the family's kitchen, seeming to find an endless amount of interest in her tea glass.
Esme looked at her daughter (for that's what Bella would always be) and smiled at the girl's nervous gestures, "Bella, I loved it."
Bella glanced up quickly, "You did?"
"You did a wonderful job with the writing. You should be proud of your work. Who would have thought our Bella was hiding a steamy romance author while driving her mini-van to and from dance practice," Esme giggled.
Bella couldn't help but laugh along, "Yeah, well, how about we don't discuss the 'steamy' parts in too much detail. You're my mom, just no, just ew, I can't."
"Maybe I'll share some of my favorite memories of the sexy times Carlisle and I have had over the years, give you fresh writing material," Esme wiggled her eyebrows and watched Bella squirm in her seat and continued to laugh.
"Sexy times? Oh please, Esme, stop! If it's not you, it's Rosalie and Emmett. I do not need to know this much about this family!" Bella rubbed at her face like she was trying to erase the mental imagery.
The phone rang, interrupting Esme's next sentence, and Bella took another bite of her chicken salad sandwich while Esme spoke to the caller.
"Is she okay? How did this happen? What was she thinking?"
Bella continued to chew, thinking something was going on with a friend or possibly even one of Carlisle's patients.
"Of course, Jasper, get what you need packed and let me know your flight information as soon as it's confirmed. We'll pick you up at the airport. I love you, and give Claire my love as well. Take a deep breath, sweetheart, it'll all be okay. Claire's a tough little girl."
All the blood had drained from Bella's face as she realized it was J on the other side of the phone call. She waited until Esme had hung up before asking, "Is everything okay?"
Esme wiped away a few tears before answering, "Alice had Claire for the weekend. It seems she went to dinner at a friend's house, consumed several glasses of wine and still felt it safe to drive her and Claire home. She lost control of her car and crashed into a tree. She's sustained a concussion and a broken wrist, and Claire, thankfully, was fine. But, the police are pressing charges and social services have taken action to have Alice's parenting rights suspended for the time being. Jasper's gathering up some of their things and he and Claire are flying out today. They're coming home. God, why did he ever leave with that woman?"
Esme ended her last sentence before falling apart in a pool of tears, and Bella could do little more than pull her into a hug and rub her back as she cried, having been stunned into silence by the news that Jasper, divorced and single Jasper, was coming home.
A/N: Duh-duh-duuuhhh! That is enough for this chapter. Shew. I figured I owed some length due to my taking so long to write it. Did I mention I write two blogs, work full time as a legal secretary, have 3 kids and a husband, and I'm adoption two more? Can I get a little grace for being crap at updating? I am sorry. I get a little lost as to what needs to happen next in the story, and then I'm so overwhelmed I write nothing. I forget what it feels like to put fingers to keyboard and just let their lives play out. I'll try and do better.
P.S. I did zero editing on this chapter, so excuse me if there are errors.