Author's note; Many thanks for the reviews of the previous chapter. I got the feeling that you liked it. Jasper really knows how to stir things up! So, here comes the cavalry. Lots of quick thinking all round. This chapter is written in dear, sweet, lovely, Rose's POV. Enjoy.
Disclaimer; I do not own Twilight but I love to play with the characters.
Pillow Talk
Life is too short
RPOV
I just knew there was something wrong, the way Jasper reacted to the news of me moving to Chicago. Shit! He's holding something back. And as for his reaction to the news that Bella would be with Edward eventually, his look was priceless! I could see Bella react as well. Edward obviously read Jasper like a book. He was so protective towards Bella, when Jasper stared at her. I do realise that Bella is a beautiful woman and maybe under different circumstances Jasper would have ended up being with Bella last weekend. But that was not what Carlisle wanted.
Carlisle knew exactly, that Bella would be good for Edward. I'm not too sure that he knows what's good for Jasper though. Shit, I don't even think that Jasper knows himself.
Alice is coming over as soon as possible. We have to talk about my move to Chicago and find out what she wants to do now. One way or another, this will get sorted.
Bella answers the door for me, as I get together something to drink.
"How are you Alice?" Bella asks. I look up. Alice seems a little tense.
"I'm fine. I got here as soon as I could. It's obviously something important for Rose to get us together on a Sunday. Are you okay?" Bella nods to reassure her.
"I'm fine, Alice. Come and sit down. We need to talk." Bella gestures towards the couch.
As they make themselves comfortable, I place a jug of water and glasses on the coffee table. I smile at Alice and kiss her cheek. She lets out a large sigh. Definitely nervous.
"Thank you for coming so quickly Alice. I'm sorry I had to disturb your afternoon." I study her face intently.
"That's okay Rose. Come on, spill." Dear Alice, eager as ever.
"First of all, how was Friday night with James?" Let's get this out of the way. Alice pours herself a drink.
"We had a great time. He's so much fun." She says with a genuine smile.
"Everything went okay then? Did you stay the night?" I ask.
"Yes I did and everything was fine. What's up Rose? You're starting to make me nervous." She looks at both of us in turn.
"Sorry, Alice. I'll get to the point. I'm going to be moving to Chicago." I begin.
"What?!" The shock on her face clearly evident.
"I'm moving to Chicago. I'm going with Emmett." I smile as I say his name.
"Her gentleman. Turns out he's Edward's cousin." Bella explains in a hushed tone.
"Oh!" She frowns a little, digesting the information and taking a sip of water.
"Yes, He's asked me to go back to Chicago with him. For good." I gauge her reactions.
"Wow! Rose, this is huge! All this happened, this weekend?" As she speaks, it hits me too.
"We've been falling for each other for the last few weeks, Alice. Yes, he asked me to go with him, this weekend. Don't worry. Bella will be here to look after you." I reach out to touch her hand.
"Great! I don't know if I could stay here on my own." No, she couldn't just yet.
"But I will be moving to Chicago as well, at some point." Bella tells her. Another shock.
"Oh!!" She's silent. Is this too much for her?
"Edward came down to see Bella this weekend and he's asked her to move there too." I say slowly.
She turns to Bella, tilting her head to one side. "So why aren't you going now?"
"Alice, I need time to myself for a while. I want to do this when I'm ready. I don't want to rush things." Bella reaches out to hold Alice's hand. They will be okay.
"I understand. I think I'd probably do the same." Alice nods.
"So for now, I'll be moving in here and I'm going to get a new job." I can hear the decisiveness in Bella's tone.
"Of course. There's no way you can carry on with this job now that you're with Edward." Alice totally understands.
"Exactly. Alice what do you want to do?" I ask.
"I'm not sure Rose. I don't think I can do this job anymore without the two of you to back me up. I'd rather not do it anymore." I understand.
"If you need more time to think then that's fine. I'll look after you Alice." Bella says encouragingly.
"What kind of job do you think you'll get, Bella?" Alice takes another sip of water.
"Johnny may have a vacancy. I've worked at his bar before. Rose seems to think that he would probably hire me again without any hesitation." Bella smiles.
"Do you think he'd want to hire me too?" Great idea!
"If that's what you think you'd like to do, then we can see if he'd like to hire the two of us." Bella answers. I have a really good feeling about this.
"That's fine by me. I'd be a lot happier if we were together." Alice says, seeming more relaxed. Good.
"What do you think you'd like to do, when I move to Chicago?" Bella looks at Alice and then she looks in my direction. I give her a small smile.
"I could go back home, to be close to my sister." She ponders.
"Or you could come and stay with Edward and me, for a while, if you wanted too. Start a new life in Chicago." Bella suggests.
"Really?!" She smiles.
"Yes, really." Bella beams. "There's plenty of time to think about it, Alice. We can talk about it some more, another time." She adds.
"Thanks Bella. We will talk about this again. I really am happy for you both." She says warmly.
"Alice? I need to ask you something." I hesitate for a moment. "What do you think about Jasper?"
"Oh! Um. I'm not sure." That's not a no.
"You like him, don't you?" Bella asks. Her tone is hopeful.
"Well, he's a lovely person." Okay.
"But?" I ask. What is his problem?
"Well, he isn't the most confident man I've ever met." I look over to Bella at this information, my eyes wide.
"What do you mean? When I asked you how things went with him, you said that you stayed the night." Now I need the truth. I just knew that he was too confident for his own good.
"Don't get me wrong. We had a great time when we were together. He's very kind and considerate and he made me laugh. It's just that…"
"Tell us Alice." Bella encourages.
"I feel really awkward telling you this." God, this must be major! Why didn't she tell me this last week?
"I think it would be a good idea if you did, Alice." I encourage. This is important.
"We didn't actually do anything." She looks a little hurt and confused. She really covered this up well.
"What, he didn't fuck you?! Is that what you're saying?" That was tactful Rose!
"No, he didn't." She lowers her head. Why didn't she say something? "He seemed up for it but then when it came down to it, he couldn't." Or wouldn't.
"Why?" Bella asks as I try to think.
"I don't know. All he wanted was watch me and see to his own needs. He didn't actually touch me." Who'd have thought it?
"A 'visual'." Bella says softly. Alice nods.
"Maybe that's why his relationships don't last long. He's okay with the friendship side of things but when it comes to the sex, he shuts down." I wonder out loud.
"I suppose he has some issues to deal with." Alice begins. "He seemed pleased that I didn't freak out." She gives a small smile.
"I'm glad you didn't Alice. Well done." I encourage. She did do really well. We don't often come across 'visuals'. I've only ever known one in my time. He took months to sort out. But I did. I take a deep breath.
"Alice, he's in town for a few days. He did ask about you. But I'm not sure what he wants to do, while he's here. I would completely understand if you said no but if he does want to see you, would you agree to it?" I almost regret asking her now. She's so quiet.
"That's alright with me, Rose. I'd be only too pleased to try and help him, if that's what's needed. But I don't want to as a job. I'd see him because I want to." She smiles.
"Good answer Alice. I think if anyone can help him, you can." I'm sure she can.
"If I need advice, I can come to one of you, yes?" We both nod.
"Absolutely, Alice. This is something that can't be rushed." Bella answers.
"So you're sure that you don't want anymore meetings, Alice?" I need to make sure that's her final decision.
"Totally, Rose. I'll have to get organised with a new job though, for when I get back from visiting my sister. I don't have that much saved, I'm afraid." No problem.
"Alice, we'll get on to it in the morning, okay?" Bella assures Alice.
"Okay, Alice. How about eleven. Johnny will be there by that time. You and Bella can go and talk to him about jobs."
"Great. I'll do that, if it's okay with you, Bella?" Bella nods and smiles.
"Alice, would you be able to come over tonight? About six. Edward and Emmett are coming over. I'm going to make something for dinner." I smile my 'pretty please' smile.
"That would be really nice, Rose. Yes I will. I'd love to meet Emmett." Great! "I've got a few things to do at home, so I'll go now and see you both later." Job done!
We walk Alice to the door and take turns to hug her. Where would we be without her?
As Bella and I sit down again, I decide to ring Emmett and sound him out about things.
"Bella. I'm going to ring Emmett to see if Jasper is coming over tonight. See how things are going." Bella nods in agreement and I reach for my phone and press speed dial number two. Bella has always been number one.
"Hi, Em! Is everything okay for this evening?" It's good to hear his voice.
"Well." He hesitates for a moment. Now what! "Jasper has thrown a spanner in the works, so to speak." He sounds despondent.
"Why, what's happened?" Don't panic yet. Keep calm. Bella looks a little worried though.
"He's not happy about our situation or Edward's for that matter. He says that he doesn't trust either of you. I'm not bothered what he has to say to me. I know what I want Rose and I know I love you. Our plans still stand. But Edward was very upset. He still hasn't rung me. I'm not sure where the hell he is right now." How did I know this wouldn't be easy?
"Em darling! We need to get this sorted for Bella and Edward's sake. Get hold of Jasper now! Bring him over here. We need to hear what he has to say and we need to have the chance to speak to him." Urgency is in my tone.
"Do you think that wise, baby?" I roll my eyes.
"Under these circumstances, yes! Don't worry we won't hurt him. We're all adults. He obviously just needs to have questions answered and be reassured. I can only imagine what he's thinking about Bella right now. Make sure he comes over here. You bring him over yourself. This has to be sorted out, Em." My gut feeling was right. I don't know what we're going to do if we can't reassure him.
"Okay, Rose. You seem to know what you're talking about." He concedes.
"Good. We'll see you soon." I reply. Bella nods. She's pieced it together.
"D'you think Jasper will come and talk to us?" She asks anxiously.
"If he's got any sense he will. He has to give you a chance Bella. Emmett hasn't seen Edward for a while. It all sound like a complete mess. We have to try." I put my head in my hands.
"We need to be careful Rose. Okay?" It's good to be reminded. I was just visualizing putting my hands around his throat.
"No problem, Bella. Kid gloves." I put my hand on my heart.
I have a drink of water and relax for a while, shutting my eyes as I sit back in the couch. Within fifteen minutes, there's a knock at the door. Thank God!
I answer the door. Emmett kisses my cheek and I usher Jasper into my apartment. He's very subdued. I wave goodbye to Emmett.
"Come in Jasper, please make yourself comfortable." I try to keep annoyed Rose at bay for now.
"I won't be staying long." He says, not looking up.
"That's entirely up to you, Jasper." I reply, not too flippantly. He sits down.
"I understand you have some concerns, Jasper." I begin.
"Yes. I do. After all, Edward is my brother. You can understand that surely?" He finally looks at me. He's challenging me.
"Of course, I understand. Bella is family to me, Jasper. Did you know that Bella is going to be looking for a new job tomorrow?" He shakes his head slowly and looks over to Bella. Bella keeps her composure. Good girl.
"She has promised Edward and for as long as I have known Bella, she never breaks a promise. Edward is the only person she needs to prove anything too. You do realise that don't you?" I doubt it somehow.
"I don't entirely agree. This affects the rest of the family as well." Not from where I'm standing. I get the feeling he's jealous. He can't stop looking over to Bella.
"Carlisle doesn't seem to have a problem. He seems happy that they're together. What are you concerned about, Jasper?" We need to get to the bottom of this.
He takes a deep breath. "Okay, as we're being so candid, I have a question for Bella." He turns to face her.
"Go ahead, Jasper." Bella answers.
"Have you ever slept with my father?" Oh boy! That's one he should be asking me!
"No." Bella answers. I know it's the truth. He smirks.
"Never?" Shit! He obviously doesn't believe her.
"Never." Bella is firm. Good girl, stand you're ground!
"I don't understand. The way he looked at you last weekend, there must have been something." He frowns and looks to the floor.
"There was absolutely nothing physical between us, Jasper. I think you understand what I'm saying don't you?" Well done Bella.
He nods.
"Jasper!" Bella says softly. You seem to be under the impression that I sleep with every man who offers me money. It's not the case." She pauses for a moment to have a sip of water. Cool calm Bella. I love it when she's like this.
"I know that you'll find it hard to believe but we have a lot more in common with you than you realise." Go girl!
"Somehow, I don't think so." He smirks. He's giving her that look again!
"Oh, I assure you we do. Do you get paid to help people with their problems?" Bella asks.
"Of course. I trained for my job! I'm quail…." Bella interrupts him effortlessly.
"Qualified? Of course you are, Jasper. And so are we. We know what we're doing. You don't see it that way but we do. For all intents and purposes, we offer a service exactly as you do, albeit in a different way. Most of the time we help men get over their hang ups about sex, whatever they might be. Usually with good results." She waits to let him absorb her words.
"I've told Edward the reasons why I got involved in that line of work." She says. "And now because of how I feel about Edward and how he feels about me, I've stopped. I promised him and I wouldn't lie to him." Bella sits back in her chair for me to take over.
"Jasper, we made a choice to do what we did and now we're making the choice to end it. I love Emmett and I wouldn't do anything to jeopardise that. Bella is going to stay in New York for a little while, to make sure that she and Edward are doing the right thing. She wants to get a new job. She's going to be staying for a little while, just so that she can start afresh. To prove to herself and to Edward, that she can do this." He nods as if he understands. But does he?
"What about Alice?" So, he does care.
"Oh, she's going to be looking for a new job as well. Why do you ask, Jasper?" I ask and look over to Bella with a small smile.
"I was just wondering." I won't push him on what he's wondering about.
"Jasper you really need to talk to Edward and set things straight, don't you?" I state. He nods.
"Emmett and Edward are coming over later. You are most welcome to join us, as long as you get things sorted out with Edward." I remind him. He's silent for a time. There's no rush. Bella and I have learnt to be patient.
"I can't figure out how you can be so understanding." He finally looks up to me and then over to Bella.
"Life is too short to bear grudges, Jasper. There's always a way of dealing with concerns, other than trying to make things more complicated for people." I answer. He nods and smiles. A genuine smile. Not the usual over-confident smirk. I'm sure he will sort this out with Edward. If not, he's dead!
End of Chapter
Author's note; I wonder what Jasper will do now? In the meantime please review. Take care.