Gift Or Torture?

Chapter 27

Preparations

JPOV

I truly feel closer to Peter and Charlotte than the Cullen family, but I can't live with them. It would be too easy to slip back into that life. I don't want that. This way, while not as satisfying, is better for me at least. I normally enjoy seeing them; however, this time I just wanted them to leave. I wanted my Ginny back! I physically hurt for her. And when Jacob returned to the house after spending an evening with her, Seth, and Leah, I could smell Ginny on him. It made me very mad! I knew deep down nothing happened, but I kept picturing them on a dance floor. I wanted to kill him for being that close to Ginny! Dancing these days is pretty much dry sex.

I looked at Nessie, who clearly could smell Ginny on Jacob as well, and she was having similar feelings to my own. However, I would guess she still doesn't fully understand her feelings. Jacob saw me looking at Nessie and he came over. "Ginny has quite the sense of humour once she's loaded, but when she stops drinking and moving, she passes out pretty quick. We returned her to the apartment. Esme said she would take it from there. I carried her from the car to the apartment," he explained to myself and Nessie as to why her scent hung on him.

I nodded. "Things went fine then?"

He nodded. "Had to break one sleazeball's hand, but after that I kept her close to me. I think others might have thought we were a couple."

I knew most humans wouldn't push Jacob, but I didn't like the fact that others thought that he and my Ginny were a couple. I must have been broadcasting because suddenly Peter, Charlotte, Edward, Bella, and Rose were all standing in the room waiting for something. "Relax, man! I only danced with her! Really, she and Leah danced together more, and that drew some attention. Poor Seth, seeing his sister like that; he might be scarred for life."

Later, I overheard Edward speaking to Jacob. "You're very lucky Jasper doesn't have my gift or you would be dead."

"It was nothing! We were only dancing!" he protested.

"I know that, you know that, and she knows that, but Jasper would feel differently. And if Nessie were older, she would too."

Peter and I were sitting in the games room. "So I've met her; now tell me how you ended up with a human."

"I got lucky…" was the answer that came to me. It was true. "I can't even explain how her being around affects my gift, or curse, or whatever you want to call it." Peter and I in the past weighed out this 'gift' I had.

"Have you thought about getting off of this diet with her around?"

"And who should be my first meal? Her father, perhaps?" I paused only for a second. "No, she actually asked to come with me once when I was going to hunt. I won't risk her, though. I won't take the chance of slipping with her around. She's been through enough."

"Like what?" he asked.

"Like I was with Marie, in her war she was used by the one they call the Dark Lord. She understands me better than anyone. Alice tried; she really did, and she could understand the vampire, but …"

"Not the Major," he offered.

"Or the empathy. Ginny is brave, mentally strong, and she's powerful. She's a tomboy at heart. She loves with everything she has."

"Fuck, man! You're so far gone." He paused, "But she had that snack Esme so lovingly ran away with?" he teased. Peter likes to get a rise out of people.

"She thought that Elizabeth's father loved her, and until three weeks back, I thought she loved him. He is the biggest fool ever! I met him while in England, It's been a long time since I've wanted to kill someone and not bother to drink them. He told her she was fat but still fuckable, along with a number of other things."

Peter hissed at that.

"What did you do?"

"He, like her, is a wizard, so I let Ginny handle it. She did very well, and we never said I was a vampire, but he's a smart boy. He'll figure it out."

"You seem more relaxed," Peter noted.

"I know," I smiled. "It's nice to have someone I can surprise for a change. I'll always care for Alice, but at times I wonder if she didn't realize that because of her gift she would control things."

"Because of Alice, you are at peace. Because of Ginny, you are happy. Is she going to be changed?"

"She has a fuller understanding of what we are. She hasn't said she wants to be changed. I like her human. You haven't seen her truly blush; she can go almost as red as her hair. That does cause me to feel lust, but drinking her is the last thing I'm thinking of."

I think Peter and Charlotte realized that right now I needed to be with Ginny, so they left without much ado. Carlisle was very happy to have Esme, Elizabeth, and Ginny back home.

I knew I was going to be in a lot of trouble, but I decided that Ginny needed a car of her own. If she wanted to live as a Muggle, then she needed this. I got the perfect car for her. "Darlin', I don't want you to be upset with me, and hear my reasoning out."

"Jasper," she said warningly, "What did you do?"

"There are going to be times when you want to do things without me, and being all the way out here you need a car of your own. So I got you one." I already knew she was upset. Once more, the rest of the family came to watch the fireworks.

"You what?"

"I got you a basic necessity for living this far from the city." She was now mad and filled with pride.

"Darlin', you are my partner. I will marry you. I'm pretty sure that I'm allowed to provide for you," I tried to point out.

She knew the others were watching. "Fine!" She wasn't happy.

I walked over to her and placed my arm around her. "Arthur provides for Molly, so why can't I do the same?" I felt her slip into acceptance. "Come on, let's go have a look," I encouraged.

I led her to the garage and opened the big door. Along with the other cars sat a black Mustang convertible. She looked at it and smiled. "A Mustang?"

"Because of your Patronus." She smiled. "Go have a seat and see how it feels," I urged.

"She gets a Mustang and I got a tank?" Bella complained.

"Bella, she can walk on her own two feet without falling," Edward retorted.

I smiled and looked at Bella, "She's not like you were, yet she's not like us. Her magic also protects her." And then, soft enough so Ginny couldn't hear, I explained that Severus had added a few spells to the car. Yes, I lied to Bella, but it made her feel better. Edward nodded in thanks to me.

My lady carefully opened the car door and slid into the driver's seat. I waited for it. "Jasper, you know I can't drive a stick!"

I smiled and nodded at the others to leave. I slid into the passenger's seat. "I thought I could teach you how to handle a stick."

She looked sideways at me. "Oh, I know how to handle a stick! And I haven't had any complaints either. However, a manual transmission is another thing." She was clearly feeling playful.

"Well, Sugar, as far as your stick handling goes, I'll have to take your word for it for now. But I thought, in the meantime, this would help pass the time."

She turned towards me. "Jasper, what's with you, the connections with me, and horses?" she oddly phrased the question.

"It's perfect for you! A horse is a beautiful thing to look at, but it is also strong, like you! And you, at times, have the friskiness of a wild horse!"

"I never really thought about it, but most Patronuses do say something about the character of the person."

I smiled at her. "Then Molly's must be a bear; strong and extremely protective of her young. Look here." I pointed to the button that made the top come down.

"Why?"

"Because most of the time when you drive, it will be on sunny days when I can't be with you, and you do need sunlight. We need to keep your vitamin D up."

"And why the color black?"

"I chose the color because while a red Mustang was more girly, it seemed too cliche for you with your hair."

I could feel it; she loved it! "I should be mad."

The next day, I got Esme, Bella, and Rose to take Ginny shopping. Her body was quickly returning to what is was before she had become pregnant, and she didn't have much "Muggle" clothing that she could wear. "Ginny, here is a credit card with your name on it." I handed her a card before she left. She wasn't happy about this. "Please darlin', take it. I want to spoil you, but I won't tell you what to wear, so go get yourself some stuff."

She sighed. "This doesn't feel right," she said.

"Why?"

"It's not my money."

I looked intently at her, then took her hand and led her to the closest mirror. "Look at what you're wearing around your neck."

She looked at the fine gold chain that held a small Cullen family crest that all the family members wore. "You're wearing the Cullen family crest. I'm sure you haven't removed it since Carlisle gave it to you. That makes you a member of this family, and in this family what's mine is yours. The only things we don't share are our mates. This," I pressed the card slightly harder into her hand, "is yours and it became yours the second you chose to have Esme and Carlisle adopt Elizabeth." I could feel a cocktail of emotions coming from her; pride, guilt, happiness, and some acceptance was slowly crawling in. I could see tears forming in her eyes.

"I'm not good at this. I can't just swallow my pride." She made eye contact with my reflection.

I kissed her temple. "You're not swallowing anything. You need to come to terms with changes in your life. Go! Spend money! And don't even look at the price tags."

"I'm not good at spending money," she whispered.

"Let Esme and Rose teach you. I don't want Alice to decide she needs to return just to teach you. That's when she's at her scariest," I tried to assure her.

She finally cracked a small smile. "I'll try."

"I promise it will be fun."

Once she left, I waited about a half hour, then headed to the city myself. I was going to see Severus. I had called ahead, so he was expecting me. We were sitting in his living room. "Sir, I know that you don't trust me because of what I am, but I would like to allow you to feel what I feel for Ginny."

He gazed at me for a long moment, then nodded. I let all the love I felt for her to come at him; the desperation I felt when she left and I feared I had lost her, the joy I felt at getting her back, the happiness she made me feel every second she was near. All of it.

His eyes grew big with amazement. "You wanted to show me this why?"

I smiled. "I'm old-fashioned about some things and while I promise you I won't tell Ginny that you're her father, you still are her father. I want to ask your permission to ask Ginny to marry me."

His eyebrows shot up and he quickly rose, turned away from me, and began pacing. He was feeling anxious, concern, worry, a sense of loss, some doubt, pride, regret, and honor. "Why are you asking me? Wouldn't Arthur Weasley be the appropriate choice?"

"If he was her father, yes," I replied.

"He is the man who raised her, whom she thinks is her father." There was a huge amount of regret coming from him.

"Yes, I'm quite sure he believes he is her father. Why?"

"If you don't want to lie to her, you're better off not knowing," he told me.

I knew he was right. "Can I ask her?"

He was hesitant. "You may. She should refuse you though; she will be giving up a lot. She would have made a great mother."

I nodded. "If she wants children, she will have them," I vowed. "They just won't be mine. I refuse to risk her." I knew that once Ginny had decided to give Elizabeth to Esme and Carlisle that she told Severus everything about our family.

I had asked Esme to make sure Ginny got a dress that made her feel beautiful, and to get everything needed to complete her look. When I left the house to speak with Severus, Edward, Emmett, and even Jacob went out to set up the date spot for me.

Once Ginny returned with the others, I asked her to change into the dress she got. Then Rose helped her with her makeup while I changed into a pair of dress pants, shirt, and tie. I topped that with a leather coat. When Ginny came down the stairs, I can't remember ever seeing a more beautiful sight. The dress she wore was black, which made her skin look paler. It was a couple of inches above the knee and hugged her body. The top sat off the shoulder, but had straps that came up and around her collarbone, making a necklace useless. She wore her hair down in flowing curls.

"Jasper, what's going on?" she asked. She was extremely curious.

"Shopping today was an excuse to get you out of the house. This whole day has been planned. Will you come with me?"

She smiled a cocky smile that I found extremely sexy. "I wouldn't want all your plans to go to waste."

A/n I heading in to the mountains for some camping, please feed me a review so I play nice with the other bears!