A Lesson in Fate

by Lillie Cullen

The much anticipated sequel to A Lesson in Release. Jasper has won the girl of his dreams and they are beginning a new life together at college. But what happens when fate intercedes? Will he be able to hold onto her or will she return to Edward?

36. Chapter 35: This is Halloween

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight. I do own my OCs, this storyline, and all the ingredients for a perfect chocolate martini.

A/N: Thanks as always to readingtime, who is betatastic! Thanks to all my LFBs for helping me pick out the Halloween costumes. I did something different in this chapter, I changed the POV several times, it was the only way to keep up with the action. Let me know if it worked. Song selection is 'This is Halloween' by Danny Elfman. Actually, the Marilyn Manson version is awesome too.

Adrian's POV

"Ally-Angel, I love you and I miss you too, so much. And I miss everyone else, too. But is this really a good idea? If I'm there, you're blind. You have no way of knowing how this turns out." The moment I got Edward's e-mail, I had to agree with him. This could be disasterous.

"Technically, that's true, I can't see the party, but I can see things further out. I see Charlie coming next week, for instance, and I see Jasper and Heidi hunting, and I see Felix and Kelly sitting in class passing notes. So by association, that has to mean that the party goes off without a hitch, right?"

"Maybe, but I shouldn't have to remind you that your visions are only as good as the decisions made before them. Someone makes a split-second decision at the party, and not only will you not see it coming because I'm around, you'll have no idea what changed or how to fix it."

Alice huffed and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "But Heidi and Felix are nothing like how we thought they'd be! I mean, Kelly is getting to hang out with us, and Felix has already slept with half the women on campus. Why shouldn't you be able to be around us, too, even if we can't admit that we're together. We'll just tell them you're a friend of Bella's, which is true, and that'll be that."

I rolled my eyes at my stubborn fiancée. "There's no way I'm gonna win this one, is there?"

"Nope," she said firmly.

I sighed. "Okay, you win." Alice jumped up and tackled me onto the miserable-cot-they-call-a-bed, peppering my face with kisses. "Can I dress up as an Ohio State football player? I already have the uniform?" I knew I had a snowball's chance in hell of making that happen, but I had to try. I was terrified of the garment bag she'd nonchalantly brought with her and draped on the back of my desk chair. I was even more terrified of the duffel bag that came with it.

Alice jumped off of me just as fast as she'd jumped on me. Damn. "No! That's totally lame!! I already have your outfit picked out for you." She ceremoniously opened the garment bag and pulled the fabric off the shoulders of the hanger, turning it so I could see.

"Ally-Angel, have I told you lately how much I love you?"

Edward's POV

The next morning, we continued our conversation, a bit more casually then the day before. I went into much more detail with her than I ever had before about my time tracking Victoria, and especially my time in South America, drowning in my sorrows in a filthy attic over an even filthier hovel. I even told her how I'd refused to feed on anything except the occasional rat that was unfortunate enough to cross my path.

We probably spent the most time talking about what happened after Italy. I think I finally made Bella understand why I had gone to the extremes in my over-protectiveness, and she showed me how in her eyes it was just another form of rejection, adding to her inferiority complex.

Then we talked about Jasper. Not about the betrayal, that was well covered territory by this point. We were finally able to talk about the good he brought her, and she for him. We were able to talk about how he healed the part of her that was still broken when he entered her life, how he helped her find herself and gave her a sense of confidence and self-esteem. We talked about what she'd done for him. I told her truthfully how much happier and lighthearted he was when he was with her, how he was so much more in control of his bloodlust because of her. It was cleansing, and it went a long way towards restoring my trust in Bella. I explained, though, that although I was grateful for what he'd done for her, and I could even go so far as concede that we probably would not be together, or as intimate, today if it weren't for her relationship with him, that I was still afraid of him trying to take her away from me again. She understood, but just as she wasn't willing to give me up entirely before, she wasn't willing to give him up entirely now. It was proof of my newfound trust in her that I didn't even question if it was for different reasons.

Alice came over around lunchtime to deliver our costumes and do Bella's make-up for the party. Bella had asked her to do it early so that she and I could hand out candy to the children before heading over to Alice and Jasper's house. Something about she and I sitting on our front porch with flickering jack-o-lanterns we had carved together lining the walk, Monster Mash playing in the background, handing out candy to little children dressed up in costumes saying 'trick or treat' just seemed so – domesticated. So human. I loved it. It was the first time I'd ever handed out candy for Halloween. No matter where we'd lived, we were always a safe distance from neighbors, secluded on the outskirts of town and not likely to get trick-or-treaters. Bella turned to me, a silly grin on her face. Three little children came to the door dressed as Lock, Shock, and Barrel. Their parents saw us in our Jack and Sally costumes and asked if they could take a picture. We gladly posed with the children, and Bella gave them her email so they could send her a copy. A little while later, a boy in a vampire costume came to the porch. Bella didn't flinch nor did her smile fade one iota as she put a double portion of candy into his plastic pumpkin and wished him a Happy Halloween. She turned to me and winked.

"What can I say? I have a thing for vampires," she teased. I found peace in that. The pain of our past was truly behind us now, no longer just swept under the rug and left to fester, but truly gone.

When the last Reese's cup had been handed out and the jack-o-lantern candles were blown out, we hopped on the bike and headed for Alice and Jasper's. I said a silent prayer along the way that all went well with this party.

Felix's POV

I looked pretty good if I did say so myself. Black tuxedo, authentic vampire cape, a little white make-up to make me look even paler, artificial blood dripping out of the corner of my mouth. I wanted to use real blood but Heidi wouldn't let me. I refused to use those stupid plastic vampire 'fangs' though. For one thing, they looked ridiculous. Besides, they would get in the way of any real biting I might want to do.

For all my attempts, I could not convince Heidi to purchase any costume with the word "Sexy" in front of it. I felt a little bad for her when she scowled, saying that she'd had to wear her 'sexy costume' every day in Italy. I never really thought about what her life was like there, never considered if she enjoyed being a fisher. I was too busy enjoying the room service meals and the occasional hookup.

But here in the states, she was a totally different person. She looked younger, more innocent, more carefree. It was…sweet. So, although she would have looked scrumptious in the sexy nurse's outfit, I had to admit that she looked lovely as a southern belle. She looked like a virginal debutante ready for her first ball in her white ruffled dress with pale pink trim and hooped skirt. She even had a parasol to match. Her hair was pulled up on the sides and flowed in banana curls down her back. She had minimal makeup on, and I realized she didn't need it. She was beautiful. I snuck up behind her and wrapped my arms around her waist to capture her in a hug, laying my chin down on her shoulder.

"Are you sure you don't want to just skip this party and let me take you upstairs and ravish you, my dear?" Heidi chuckled before turning around to hug me.

"Felix, you are my oldest friend, you know that?" I hugged her tight and pulled back to kiss her nose. I think the Cullens are wearing off on me. I'm turning into a pansy. "Yes, and you are mine. In fact, besides Demitri, you are the only friend I've ever had before moving here."

"Which is why I know that it's not me you want to ravish. There's a certain strawberry blonde human at that party tonight that you're dying to get in your bed." I laughed. "Just remember," she continued, "No repeat performances. We can't chance any of those girls figuring out that you didn't feel cold to them because of poor circulation."

"I don't do encores, you know that." She was really getting attached to our life here. Truth be told, so was I. The Cullens had become fast friends, and I was fascinated by Kelly. I could see myself going back for seconds where she was concerned, that was, if she ever let me have her in the first place. Something about a woman that can hold her own against me that turns me on.

Jasper's POV

"Alice! In case you forgot, you and I are not married anymore! Which means I get to pick out my own clothes!" I stood staring at the outfit, and I use that term loosely, laying on my bed and scowled. Alice pranced in.

"Yes, technically that may be true, but there are people that will be there tonight that don't know that, won't there? Besides, I picked out everyone's outfits, not just yours, so deal with it. Now hurry up, Emmett's going to be here soon."

"You do know that this isn't what real cowboys wear, right?" I asked her with one eyebrow raised.

"And your point is?" she asked with one hand on her jutted-out hip.

"No point, Alice. You win," I said, defeated.

"Good. You're gonna look hot in that."

"Hot?" I asked her with one eyebrow raised. "Who the hell do I have to look hot for?"

"Oh, you never know," she sang as she flitted out of the room. I turned back to the costume with a heavy sigh. At least she was letting me wear my own boots. I undressed and put the chaps on first. They were low-rise, so I had to go commando. Blue jeans, with black leather over them, starting with a curve to match the lower curve of my ass cheeks and going all the way down to the lower hem except for a small area of just denim behind each knee to make them more flexible to walk in. They were skin tight around my ass and thighs, flaring into a boot cut on the bottom to allow room to slide over my well worn black Dingo cowboy boots. There was a wide black leather belt with a large oval silver belt buckle with a mustang raised on its hind legs in the middle. There was no shirt, just a black leather vest with no buttons. And, of course, a black felt cowboy hat. It looked more like something you would see at a male revue show, I thought as I double checked that the seams on the pants were real and not Velcro or something. I shook my head and laughed as I got dressed.

I could already hear the music playing downstairs. As I descended the stairs, I saw that Edward and Bella were there, looking like quite the perfect couple, as were Kelly and Lacie and a few of their girlfriends. I couldn't help but laugh at Kelly's outfit. She had a tight black scoop-neck t-shirt with blue jeans, a black leather jacket, a large silver cross necklace, a blonde wig pulled up into a ponytail, and a belt holding a couple of large wooden stakes. Buffy. And Lacie was dressed as Willow. Obviously, Kelly had overheard Felix's rant about his 'irresistible' vampire outfit and had dressed accordingly. Hysterical. I looked around and realized that Felix and Heidi were not here yet. Neither was Adrian. I said I silent prayer yet again that nothing go wrong tonight. Evil pixie.

No sooner had that thought entered my mind, then Alice appeared, dressed as none other than Vidia, the evil fairy from Tinkerbell. Her wig, black hair, long and flowing, made her look even lovelier than usual, especially when paired with the maroon fairy costume with shimmering, translucent wings. She looked at me and smirked. "What? I figure if the shoe fits…" I laughed and kissed her cheek as she walked by.

Bella and Edward came up to us then. Bella had a glass of green punch in her hand, with a candy gummy finger floating in it among the ice. I could smell the vodka in it. I'll have to keep an eye on her, I thought, before reminding myself that it wasn't my job anymore. Edward tilted his head at me, but said nothing.

Kelly and Lacie came up and hugged everyone, thanking Alice and I for throwing the party. Kelly looked at Bella and asked if she could steal Edward for a dance, taking him to the makeshift dance floor we had made in the living room. Bella nodded her head with a smile. I started to walk away, not wanting to be tempted, when the next song started playing. I immediately turned around.

"May I have the pleasure of this dance, ma'am," I asked, laying the southern drawl on thick. Bella giggled and accepted my hand as I led her to the dance floor.

"Certainly," she said. I pulled her into my arms, breathing deeply. "You make for a very sexy cowboy," she teased, and I would have been overjoyed if the statement wasn't immediately followed by a wave of regret. I decided to tease her anyway.

"You know how the song goes, darlin'…save a horse, ride a cowboy." I bucked my hips a little against hers and heard her soft gasp of shock. I pulled her flush against me as we started dancing. I felt concern coming from Edward as he turned to watch us, but it quickly changed to trust, and he went back to his casual conversation with Kelly as they danced. I bent down and began singing the words softly to Bella.

Looking back, on the memory of
The dance we shared beneath the stars above
For a moment, all the world was right
How could I have known, that you'd ever say goodbye

And I, I'm glad I didn't know
The way it all would end, the way it all would go
Our lives, are better left to chance
I could have missed the pain,
But I'd have had to miss
The dance.

I squeezed her tighter to me, completely caught up in the moment. I ran my hands up and down her warm back, wishing she weren't wearing an itchy red wig, keeping me from burying my fingers in her hair. I felt her try to pull back a little, starting to feel uncomfortable and a little guilty, but I also felt enough affection from her to give me the courage to try and prolong the moment. Just a little longer, I thought, as I breathed the words into her ear.

Holding you, I held everything
For a moment, wasn't I the king
But if I'd only known, how the king would fall
Then who's to say, you know I might have changed it all.

And I, I'm glad I didn't know
The way it all would end, the way it all would go
Yes my life, is better left to chance
I could have missed the pain,
But I'd have had to miss
The dance.

Bella squeezed her arms around me to give me a hug and then pulled back. I kept my hands on her hips and looked into her eyes. "Please, Bella?" I begged with a cracked voice. I wasn't even sure what exactly I was begging her for. I just needed…more. She looked at me, heartbroken and guilty with a sad smile as she put her hand on my cheek. I leaned into it and closed my eyes, relishing the warmth of her soft skin on mine.

Edward came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, his emotions hidden behind his calm. I'm sorry, Edward, I thought. I'm trying. Bella released me and put her hands over his. I opened my eyes to see her smiling back at him. She was thankful to him for understanding, I supposed. He looked at me and then glanced off to the left with just his eyes, not moving his head at all from Bella's shoulder. I followed his gaze. Felix and Heidi were standing there, both watching the scene with confusion and suspicion. SHIT.

I looked back at Bella and Edward. "I'm sorry, both of you," I said before heading out the backdoor. I was just about to run when I realized that it would probably make the situation that much worse. Instead I plopped down on the patio steps and put my head in my hands.

I caught the scent of wildflowers before Heidi sat down beside me, not paying a bit of mind to how the damp wood of the patio would most likely stain her beautiful white dress.

"You are the epitome of a southern belle, Heidi. Believe me, I would know," I said with a sad smile before turning my eyes back to the ground.

"You really care for her," she stated. It was not a question. My mind was a blur of thoughts, going over every possible response and its potential outcome. "Don't worry," she said, surprising me. "I'm not going to say anything. You are a good friend, and you've been listening to my problems patiently for weeks. I don't know why, but you've very quickly become almost as close as Felix to me, and I've known him for over a century. I think it might have something to do with the fact that you smell like magnolias and pecan pie. I can't get enough of it, I'm embarrassed to say."

"It's because I'm your singer, and you're mine," I blurted out without even thinking.

"What?!" she asked, and my head shot up with the realization of what I had done. Shit. Damn. Fuck. Just then, I heard Adrian's voice in the living room, and thought back to Alice's vision. She said that she saw me telling Heidi we were each other's singers and then the vision went black. I chuckled as it suddenly made sense. Well, at least it wasn't because we all died.

I turned to look at Heidi. "I can't resist your scent, either. I feel a pull to be near you, to drink in your perfume as much as possible. Plus, I can't feel your emotions, and I can't affect yours. Alice's theory is that if either of us were human, we would be each other's singers." I shrugged, still not sure how much I bought it.

"Well, that makes sense," she said with a chuckle. "What are you going to do about Bella? Does Alice know? She must realize she's not your true mate if you have romantic feelings for Bella."

"Alice knows. She thinks I'll get over it in time," I answered honestly, well, honestly with strategic omissions. "What am I going to do, Heidi? It hurts so much." Heidi put one arm around my shoulders and pulled me closer to her so I could lay my head on her shoulder. She rubbed her hand up and down my forearm soothingly, leaning her head on mine. I was enveloped in her scent and began taking deep breaths, each one calming me just a little bit more. I closed my eyes and allowed her presence to comfort me.

"Everything happens for a reason, Jasper. It'll all work out, you'll see." I didn't see how, not without Bella in my life, but I nodded my head anyway. I couldn't risk talking about this anymore with her. In my state of mind, I'd be spilling my guts to her about everything, and then we'd all be in even more danger.

"Come on, darlin'," I said, standing and offering her my hand to help her stand. "It would be a shame to let a costume this beautiful go to waste."

Edward's POV

"You alright, Bella?" I asked, turning her in my arms as Jasper made his way outside.

"Yes, I'm fine. I'm just worried…" I put my finger over her lips to stop her. I knew what she meant, and I was worried too, but voicing those concerns within earshot of Heidi and Felix was not going to do any of us any good. I was beginning to feel bad about not being forthright with them, but at this point, it was for their protection as much as it was for ours.

"Bella!" Emmett yelled as he barged through the front door. All eyes turned to him as he barreled his way over to us. He looked ridiculous with his bright purple suit with leopard print lapels, lime green satin shirt with only the last two buttons buttoned, white snakeskin shoes, and a purple fedora with a lime green feather popped out of the purple trim. He had a ton of fake 'bling' and was carrying a cane with an eight ball handle.

"Oh my God, Emmett!" Bella squealed in delight as she jumped into his open arms.

"Bella, how are you gonna be one of my ho's looking like a rag doll?" he asked, kissing her cheek.

"Your 'ho's'?" she asked, laughing.

"Sure! There's no bidness like ho bidness!" he said as he stood back and put his hands out in a 'check me out' stance, before turning slowly in a circle for Bella's approval.

"Very…you, Emmett," Bella appraised, rolling her eyes.

"Why, thanks, Bella! Although I must admit Alice picked out the outfit for me," he said with a shrug before turning to me. "Eddie! How's it hanging, man?" I shook my head at him as gave him a hug.

"Been too long, Emm."

"True, but on the other hand, I've really enjoyed our phone conversations lately," he said suggestively, wagging his eyebrows and winking at me. Bella cocked her head to the side and looked at me questioningly. I just shook my head. Emmett laughed, hearty and deep in his chest before kissing the top of Bella's head. "Nothing for you to worry about, sugar. Just guy talk." Bella smiled and shook her head at him.

"Adrian's here, I'm going to go say 'Hi' and leave you two to your guy talk. But I'm warning you right now, I see you break out the nail polish and ice cream and I'm staging an intervention." She gave me a quick peck of a kiss, still laughing, before she headed off in Adrian's direction.

"Ain't life grand?" Emmett asked.

Adrian's POV

Don't hug Ally. Don't kiss Ally. Don't approach her before you approach Bella. You can ask her to dance, but only once and not until after you've danced with Bella and Kelly. When you DO dance with Ally, keep your hands to yourself. Think of dead cats or something so you don't get aroused and give us away. Act as if you don't know where everything is, such as the bathroom or the stuff in the kitchen. I mentally went over the very long list of rules Ally had set down for me as I walked up the sidewalk of my own house, missing the sound of my footsteps on the porch before adding one of my own. Don't talk about the wedding. This was going to be a long night.

Luckily, Bella saw me almost as soon as I got in the door. "Adrian!" she yelled.

"Hells Bells, only you could dress up as Sally as still look FINE!" I said as I hugged her tight. I missed her so damn much it hurt. I couldn't wait for Christmas break to get here.

"You're looking mighty fine, yourself!" she said enthusiastically, stepping back to take in my Rat Pack era Frank Sinatra costume, complete with spats and fedora. "You know, I might just have switch my Cary Grant crush over to Frankie now," she teased. "I'm tempted to set up the karaoke machine and make you sing 'The Way You Look Tonight.'"

"Not until I've had more than a few glasses of that witches' brew. Hey, is your dad still coming next week for the Michigan game?" I still couldn't believe it. We were 9-0, ranked #1 in the both the BCS and Coaches poll, and were getting ready to play our archrival, the #2 ranked Michigan Wolverines. The winner will be named the Big 10 Champion and move on to play in the National Championship. Not only that, but I was being talked about as the underdog for the Heisman. No freshman has ever won. Hell, only one sophomore has won in the history of the award. I thought for sure my parents would fly up for the game, but they were apparently heading to Hawaii on vacation and couldn't be bothered. Something about my mother not liking the cold. Whatever. So I saved my seats in the parent's section for Charlie and Emmett. I knew they would appreciate them.

"Absolutely! He's really excited. I'm a little nervous about him being here," she said cryptically, and I nodded in agreement. Of course, Charlie should be nothing compared to the minefield this party was sure to be. A dance mix of 'Grim Grinning Ghosts' came on.

"Come on, let's dance!"

Felix's POV

"Alice, what was all that about?" I asked. Her jaw was dropped slightly, but she didn't appear as shocked as I would have expected, considering we just witnessed her husband hanging all over Bella of all people. Not that I blamed him, but still.

"I have no idea," she said dully. My eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Something is not quite right. I was distracted from my thoughts when Kelly and Lacie walked by me.

"You'd better watch out, vamp," Kelly said over her shoulder with a smirk.

"Alice, what is Kelly dressed as?" I asked as I watched her hips sway seductively.

"Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It's a television show that used to be real popular here. Lacie's dressed up as Buffy's best friend, Willow, who was a lesbian witch." My cock twitched at the naughty thoughts that statement created.

"So I tell her I'm dressing as a vampire, and she decides to dress as a slayer? I think the gauntlet has been laid down, don't you think? Well, if she wants to play, I can play. Excuse me, dear." I smirked as I followed after Kelly, grabbing her by the hips and lifting her off her feet, carrying her onto the dance floor. She fought me for a minute, but then huffed in defeat and started to dance. I pulled her tight against me so there could be no question of her affect on me as we grinded to the music.

"Do you feel what you do to me? Don't you realize that you're the one that I want?" I could smell her arousal, and it was so sweet.

"I'm warning you, vamp, you're gonna get staked." I glanced down at her wooden stakes in her pretend utility belt. I pulled one out of its holder as she turned around to face me.

"You mean, you intend to cause me harm…with this?" I asked incredulously as I took the tip between my fingers and turned it to dust. Her eyes grew wide and I immediately realized my mistake.

"What…how did you…that's not possible…?" she stuttered. I needed to distract her, give me some more time to think of a plausible explanation. So I did the only thing I could think of. I dropped the stake on the ground, pulled her to me and kissed her. I took advantage of the fact that her mouth was agape and plunged my tongue into her mouth, caressing hers, silently pleading with her. Forget what you saw. Let me make you feel good. Let me make you forget everything else. I praised the gods when she began returning my kiss.

"Excuse me," a young man with blond hair said, tapping me on the shoulder. "Mind if I cut in?"

I groaned as her lips released me. "Adrian!" she cried, pulling from my grasp and hugging him.

"Dance with me?" he asked, already leading her several steps away from me. Behind them, Edward was dancing with Bella, a smirk on his face. I had a sneaking suspicion he sent the human to interrupt us on purpose. I would need to find a way to reassure him and Jasper that I mean Kelly no harm. I bowed deeply to Kelly and Adrian and walked backwards off the dance floor. I needed some advice. I looked around for her, shocked to find her dancing with Jasper. He looked as if he were in pain, his fists clutching the back of her dress, his breaths bordering on frantic. Heidi caught my eye and shook her head as if to say 'don't worry about it.'

What a strange night this was turning out to be. Alice surprised me, appearing at my side with almost no warning. "So what was with the little He-Man display? First picking her up as though she were a feather, and then turning her wooden stake to dust. We're lucky she's the only one who noticed that," Alice whispered at a tenor the humans would not be able to pick up on. She sounded more sympathetic than angry, though, which was more than I deserved. If one of the Cullens had made a similar mistake, would I have been so generous?

"I forgot myself. She gets under my skin."

"Yeah, love'll do that to ya," Alice quirked.

Love? "Preposterous." Lust, definitely. Fascination, certainly. Infatuation, maybe. But love? Inconceivable. What did I really know about her? That she was a music major, a wonderful cellist who loved Italian operas. That she was unfortunately a descendant of the late, great Major Jasper Whitlock, and therefore unknowingly under the direct protection of the Cullens. That she had a kind heart and a sharp tongue. That she had lips made for kissing and long, creamy legs that just begged for me to take up residence between them and never, ever leave.

"Uh huh. Keep telling yourself that. Wanna dance?" she asked. Alice was being so nice, especially considering Jasper's odd behavior had him in the arms of two women already tonight, neither of which was his wife.

"It would be my pleasure."

Edward's POV

This party was quickly getting out of hand. So far, Jasper has come close to blowing our cover twice, first with his little display with Bella and then with his confession and subsequent latching onto Heidi. Now Felix has potentially exposed us to Kelly with his lust-driven negligence. All we need is for Adrian to publicly profess his love for Alice and Emmett to shine a spotlight on his chest to turn himself into a portable disco ball and this party will be a perfect disaster.

"Kelly's coming over to talk to us," I whispered to Bella. "Just follow my lead."

"Bella, Edward, can I talk to you guys for a minute?" Kelly asked, biting on her fingernails. I'd already heard from their thoughts what had happened. Time to do damage control.

"Sure. I could use some fresh air. Why don't we go for a walk outside for a few?" Kelly nodded her head and I led them through the crowd to the back patio.

"I don't know how to say this, but something is really weird about Felix. I mean, he's so strong, like superhero strong. His hands are always ice cold, and from what Lacie tells me, that's not the only thing about him that's cold. And everytime I look at him, my brain turns to mush and all I can think about is jumping his bones."

Bella and I shared a quick glance, trying to suppress our laughter. "Well, Kelly, I can tell you that Felix spends a lot of time at the gym, it makes sense that he's strong."

"Yeah, have you seen his arm muscles? They're almost as big as Emmett's," Bella added.

"And I've heard him talking to Alice about circulation problems, which might explain why his…extremities…are cold," I continued. Bella nodded in agreement.

"As for him dazzling you, I think that's all you, Kelly," Bella said with a chuckle.

"Dazzling me?" Kelly asked.

"Well, that's what I call it when Edward gets me all befuddled and distracted," Bella explained.

"No…that's not it…I mean I don't…I mean, he doesn't. Aw, hell." Bella smiled knowingly at her.

"On that note, I'm going to go squeeze a dance in with my pimp-daddy-big-brother before we call it a night. I'm not sure I can handle much more excitement for one evening."

I nodded my head and kissed her on the cheek. "I'm going to see if Heidi wants to dance. Jasper's being very gentlemanly keeping her entertained since she's new in town, but I'm sure Alice is anxious for him to take her on a spin around the dance floor."

Luckily, Jasper got the hint, and released Heidi with no complaints, and went off to dance with Alice, making a good show of being just as touchy-feely with her as he had been with Bella and Heidi. More, actually, peppering tiny kisses along the crook of Alice's neck and telling her he loved her loud enough for Heidi and Felix to hear. It was the first intelligent thing he'd done all night.

"You're very understanding about your brother," Heidi said. "I'm not sure there are many men who would be okay with that."

I shrugged my shoulders. "I trust Bella. I know she loves me." It was heartwarming to realize that it was the truth. I did, finally, trust Bella, even around Jasper. "Besides, Jasper is a good man, and my brother. I can't hold it against him. If I attacked every man who lusted after Bella in one form or another, I would significantly reduce both the human and vampire population," I whispered. Heidi laughed.

Son of a bitch, feeling up my Ally. Fucker better get his lips off her. Right. Fucking. Now. "Thank you for the dance, Heidi, but you'll have to excuse me." I really didn't know how many more fires I could put out tonight. I caught Adrian when he was about 10 feet away from Alice and Jasper and grabbed him by the back of his jacket collar, pulling him back as inconspicuously as I could. "You really don't want to do that, Adrian."

"Oh, Edward, I think I really do. Come on, I saw him earlier. Tell me you don't want a shot at him too," he hissed through clenched teeth just as I pulled him outside.

"Calm. Down."

"No way. He's having too much fun going above and beyond the call of duty if you ask me."

"Adrian, I realize that you're upset, but I can promise you that Jasper is not enjoying this party. He did what he had to do with Alice to cover his tracks. It was damage control, nothing more. Try using those meditation exercises I taught you. Believe me, it'll help." Adrian took several, deep, cleansing breaths and pulled himself together.

"I'm out of here. Tell Bells I said goodnight, 'kay?"

"Sure thing. I sent you an email regarding some more of the arrangements we discussed. Check it when you get home; it'll give you something to look forward to," I said with a smile. "Oh, and hey! I finished the Guide!"

"No shit! Good for you! I'd love to have the heart-to-heart about whatcha learned, but I gotta get back to the dorm before curfew. Not that I want to stick around here right now, anyway."

"I understand, believe me. 'Night, Adrian."

"Night, Edward."

I went back in the house to see the party dying down. Thank God. Kelly and Lacie were saying their goodbyes. I heard in Kelly's thoughts that she was considering giving Felix her number, or kissing him goodbye, but in the end she just waved at him on her way out the door, pausing to give me a hug and thank me for the pep talk. Emmett was sitting on the couch with Bella, regaling her with stories about Spike the rhino. Heidi and Felix were dancing, and Alice and Jasper were starting to clean up the mess. Once the last human was gone except for Bella, we used our true speed to clean up the rest in 30 seconds or so.

"That's what I love about living with vampires. I never have to worry about doing housework," she teased. I rolled my eyes at her, sitting down behind her, taking her wig off and kissing her neck before I started pulling all the bobby pins out of her hair. When the last pin was gone, I ran my fingers through her hair, massaging her scalp. Bella leaned her head back and closed her eyes, humming in appreciation.

Emmett nodded his head, approving of my public display of affection, I supposed. Bella yawned. "Come on, love, let's go home. See you tomorrow, Emm?"

"Yup," he said, standing to hug Bella goodnight. "I'm going to stay here and harass Alice and Jasper for a while. I'll harass you guys tomorrow. Love ya, sis."

"Love you, too, Emm. Night." Bella barely made it inside the house, flopping on the bed, immediately falling into a deep sleep. It had been a long night for everyone, I thought with a sigh.

Next stop on the NCB world tour is Pontefract, England. Enjoy your lap dance with Adrian, ladies! I know I had some stops to make in Scotland, Ireland and Wales -- remind me where to go, ladies!