~Author's Note~

Thanks so much to those of you who have reviewed so far! I'm so very glad you like the story!! Just to clear up for those who may be curious, yes this is set in the Civil War era...one of my favorite time periods just for the sheer romanticism of it. Well this is Chapter 2! I hope you enjoy this one as well...sometimes I get worried that I ramble and make no sense, but I hope didn't do that here :). Enjoy and keep reviewing!!

Jasper Whitlock still was the most handsome man Alice had ever seen. Time apart had of course changed him some, though to her it was drastic. He was still over a foot taller than her as he had been for the majority of their lives. His hair was still the same warm shade of gold it always had been, falling in the same messy curls. His eyes were still that steel grey and held the same intensity that made you feel like Jasper could see every emotion you ever felt. He was still built of lean muscle and still had that warm, somewhat shy Southern smile that couldn't help but make anyone else smile as well. His posture was still impecible, maybe only slightly straighter after his recent military training and he was still very obviously the gentleman he always had been. Then, what about him now made Alice's mouth go dry and her stomach flip? Was it just seeing him when she hadn't expected to, or was it more? Whatever it was she didn't quite know yet, but she didn't really care to think on it now. Instead she remained frozen to the spot she was, staring at him.

Jasper smirked slightly and raised his eyebrows. "Have I grown an extra nose?" he joked to the others, who of course all laughed.

"So you decided to join us after all…" Emmett teased moving to shake his cousin's hand followed by Edward who did the same.

"I'm not sure how well my mother would have taken it if I'd missed another event at home," he smiled, allowing himself to avert his attention from Alice for a moment.

"Well its nice to see you here, a barbeque at the Whitlock home isn't quite right without you here…" Bella said with a smile.

"Well thank you Miss Bella," he replied politely giving the other Brandon sister's a polite nod. "I just wish your sister felt the same…I'm beginning to wonder if I shouldn't have waited a day to return…" he said teasingly, turning his attention back on Alice who had apparently been following him very carefully with her eyes. "Its nice to see you again Alice…" Jasper said softly, moving closer toward her.

Alice looked up slowly as he moved closer and his eyes became even higher above her. She felt her cheeks tinting a soft pink and the corners of her lips turned up slightly. Oh, how she had missed him. Her honey brown eyes danced with his and her smile grew even more. Jasper's grin grew as well and slowly he bent to kiss her hand gently. In an instant, the time it took for his lips to touch her skin, Alice's stomach filled with butterflies. She looked down at his eyes, locked on hers, and felt her face flood with heat and knew her cheeks were shining a brilliant red.

"It—Its nice to see you too Jasper…" she whispered breathlessly.

Jasper grinned and stood up straight again, their eye contact still unbroken and her hand still in his. "You look beautiful…as always…" he said causing her blush to grow and for her to look away bashfully.

Time basically ceased to exist. They were still at the barbeque, they could hear it all around them, but the moment only existed for the reuniting of these two friends. Alice felt so warm standing here in his gaze and it nothing to do with the Georgia sun. It was hard to believe she could have missed him this much. They were simply good friends, or had been when he left. Things were different now, an obvious fact, though neither of them truly comprehended just how much things had changed. There was so much they each wanted to say to each other. How much the other had been missed, and how wonderful it was to be back here, requests to spend their lunch together, everything basically. But none of it would be said right now.

"Jasper! Jasper come on over here my boy and talk to us about that Westpoint education!" came a brash voice from somewhere in the distant crowds.

They both flinched as reality came into focus once again and Alice looked in the direction of the voice and then back at Jasper.

"I'm sorry…I'll be back soon…" he muttered sadly, giving her a courteous bow and nodding at the others before turning to join the group of men that had beckoned him. Alice simply watched him go in silence already missing his hand around hers.

"Alice? Alice…" Bella moved to wave her hand in front of her sister's face. "Come on, we're all going this way so we can visit and get our food."

It took a moment, but Alice was able to gain control over her attention and follow the others through the grounds, every now and then looking toward a glimpse of what she thought was Jasper, but it was never more than a glimpse. Lunch passed in a blur, and Alice barely touched her food, though she was beginning to come back into more social behavior. It was clear to everyone that she was rather distracted though.

"Alice…we're going in now for our rest…" Rosalie said softly as the girls all stood to say goodbye to their beaus for the time being.

Alice stood and nodded with a smile. "Alright…I'll meet you inside…" she said watching as her sisters turned to say goodbye to Edward and Emmett. For a moment she watched them. They were both so in love, you could see it in their very being. Bella would practically melt when Edward smiled, and Rose couldn't keep her eyes off of Emmett for more than a few moments at a time. And of course Edward and Emmett were just as in love. You could see it in their very being and something about standing here watching them together, and say their short goodbyes made Alice sad. Slowly she turned around to make her way to the house her heart sinking slightly with the weight of her being alone.

Alice ascended the stairs along with the rest of the young women the sound of skirts rustling and idle chatter ringing through the house. She remained silent as she followed the groups into the salon and found where Massie had set up her and her sisters' spot to rest. She reached behind her to untie the laces of her dress and let it fall to the floor before she stepped out of it to lay in her petti-coats on the palate Massie had made. Soon there after, Rosalie and Bella joined her on either side and quickly rolled over to fall asleep, but Alice wasn't so lucky. Instead she lay there, staring at the ceiling and listening to the faint snores of a few of the other ladies in the room. It was basically silent, but Alice's thoughts were deafening. It was too hot in this room, and there was too much on her mind. If she didn't get out she'd probably go mad. So after a moment of convincing herself, Alice moved carefully to stand without waking her sisters and even more carefully to walk through the room without waking the others.

Once she'd managed to sneak out of the room Alice thought about the fact that she was now walking around in her under garments but she knew putting on that confining dress would only add to her feelings of stress. So instead she decided to risk future whispers about her discretion and hurried her way out to the deserted side of the grounds, away from the men who sat socializing and arguing about politics. She let out a sigh and began walking along one of the paths away from the house and the noise to a place she could think.

Where were these feelings coming from? Why was she so interested in watching her sisters in love? What had changed so much with Jasper that she was so glad to see him, and couldn't get him off her mind when he was gone? Everything was so confusing to her. Things were never this frustrating before. Alice stopped for a moment and closed her eyes, trying to clear her head. In the search for solace and peace she began to hum softly, music had always been a passion of hers. Her mother had always sung to her and her sisters when they were afraid or upset and Alice had made it a habit to do the same once their mother was gone. So in this moment, Alice found the need to hum to herself, just to keep her sanity about her. As the song began to work its magic, she began to walk again, enjoying the soft breeze and appreciating the fact that she didn't have a heavy dress the weight her down. It was a beautiful day and now she was able to really enjoy it and because of that, she allowed herself to start singing aloud, though still in soft tones.

Jasper looked up at the sound of a soft voice and saw the familiar shape of Alice Brandon walking by. He smirked slightly at the fact that she had managed to sneak away from the other women and was now wandering the grounds of his family's home, humming a tune. As she came closer however, he noticed that Alice's choice of attire was a bit on the unconventional side. Alright, she was in her under garments and instantly Jasper knew he should look away…but he couldn't. She was breathtaking. The afternoon sun glowed off her skin, more of it showing than was probably appropriate, but he didn't care right now. All he cared about right now was that he was home again and was able to see Alice. He had known he'd loved her for some time now, but he had never wanted to say anything for risk of losing any connection with her at all. Secretly, he had hoped that time together would bring her to feel the same way for him and in that hope he had been willing to be patient. But seeing her today, he couldn't sense that anything was that different between them. Maybe his hope was in vain, but he refused to place it anywhere else. So instead he sat here beneath a tree watching the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen and listening to her angelic voice as she sang, knowing that he would have to make his presence known soon. And so, after a moment he cleared his throat hesitantly, just loud enough for her to realize he was there.

Alice of course spun around, her eyes wide as she searched for whoever had caught her in her moment of meditation. In an instant her eyes met cold steel and she blushed violently. It was Jasper, of course it would be Jasper that would catch her like this. And what was worse, he'd already seen her, she knew there would be no use in hiding or running, in fact that would probably just draw more attention to herself, so instead she stood there, blushing and avoiding his gaze as best she could.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you, and I can leave if you'd like…I probably should leave…" Jasper stammered.

"No!" Alice said without thinking. What was that about? Why in the world would her wish to see him kick in so strongly now? And the fact that she had just yelled at him to stay when she was standing here so exposed made her blush all over again. "I mean…I should go…I'm not exactly in an appropriate way right now….." she mumbled. There was a silence that followed where they were both unsure of what to say and were afraid to meet each other's eyes. But Jasper couldn't make her think he was ashamed to see her.

"I um…I actually think you look beautiful…." He confessed shyly.

Of course her eyes went wide. "I beg your pardon?!"

"No! Oh no! I just mean, you look comfortable and happy…and you look beautiful when you're happy….." he covered trying to find the best way to explain without sounding completely improper. The truth was, Jasper couldn't care less what Alice wore when she looked so in her element. She was outside, in the sun, singing to herself and out of the pain that must be those gowns.

"Ohh…" she breathed, nodding still unsure how she should feel about what he was saying. Knowing he thought she was beautiful and that he liked seeing her happy gave her butterflies, but were butterflies enough to overcome years of tradition and etiquette? Slowly Alice looked up from the ground to find his eyes and in an instant knew her answer. Yes…absolutely yes. "Would…um…would it be alright if I sat down…with you?" she asked bashfully hoping she wasn't pushing his open mindedness too far.

Jasper simply nodded glancing at the grassy spot beside him. What was he doing? Why was he so willing to risk her reputation just to have another moment with her? His eyes followed her as she moved slowly to find a place in the grass to sit. Once she was seated he looked into her eyes and smiled slightly. "I'm sorry if this is uncomfortable for you…I really don't mind leaving."

She was silent though. She gave him a slight nod but didn't say a word for a moment. The silence wasn't exactly uncomfortable. Jasper didn't mind it so much, he would have liked to know if she was alright, but sitting here with her made it something he didn't mind doing. The only sound was the breeze in the trees and each other's soft breaths. But suddenly Alice's expression changed slightly and he knew she had been thinking.

"I really am glad you came home Jasper…" she said finally.

He looked up in surprise but couldn't hide his smile. That hadn't exactly been what he was expecting to hear, but it was something he didn't mind her saying.

She smiled too, an automatic response to seeing his grin, and glanced down at her lap where her fingers were tying themselves in knots. "I've missed you. It's an odd thing having your very best friend so far away…" she chuckled.

He chuckled as well and nodded. "I missed you too Alice. I wanted to write you but either had no time or knew I'd be home before the letter actually reached you…"

"I understand…" she smiled, looking down into her lap again. Her mind flooded with so many things in that one moment. She wasn't sure what to say next. The silence dragged on, and Alice knew she needed to say something but her mind wasn't working with her mouth to produce the right words. And so, as it would inevitably happen, what she hadn't expected to say was what came next. "Do you really think I'm beautiful?"

As soon as the words left her mouth she was nervous. She bit her lip and refused to meet his eyes. Why had she asked that? He had said it twice already and her curiosity had been peaked, but hearing herself ask him outright felt like such an odd moment. She bit her lip shyly afraid to even see what answer his face would reveal before he even said it. What had she just gotten herself into? What had she just sentenced her heart to?

Alice's mind was racing and so was Jasper's. She had sincerely just asked that? Was she afraid that maybe he didn't? She had no reason to doubt that at all. To Jasper, Alice was the most breathtaking creature on God's earth. He had never had any doubts that he loved her, from the moment he knew what loving a woman meant, he knew he was meant to love Alice. Could this question be the indication that his hope to be loved in return was becoming a reality? He looked at her carefully, waiting for her eyes to rise and meet his. In this moment, looking at him, the question hanging in the air around them, Alice looked so vulnerable, waiting for him to cradle her heart or crush it with a single word. Jasper knew he'd never destroy such precious gift, Alice was offering him the beginnings of her love, and he'd do all he could to cherish that. So here he sat, staring into her warm eyes and feeling love flooding out from within him. Slowly he leaned closer and her breathing shook slightly. He could feel her warm breath on his face, could smell the scent that only Alice could possess.

"I think you are and always have been the most beautiful woman I've ever seen…" he whispered to her, their closeness not allowing for any more volume.

Alice's breath caught in her throat and she felt an amazingly pleasant warmth spread through her. She had never once felt happier and couldn't believe just what he'd said. His voice had been so soft it had sent chills down her spine and she shivered slightly, but her eyes never moved from his, though they began to dance joyfully as his words sunk in. She smiled just slightly, and he smiled back before cautiously lifting a hand to stroke her cheek with his fingers. Slowly he leaned just the slightest bit closer and when within a millimeter of her he took one moment's hesitation before touching his lips to hers in a feather light kiss and in that minor contact, Jasper and Alice both felt whole for the first time.

~Author's Note~

Well there is Chapter 2! I hope you enjoyed it and keep looking for the next chapter...school might be getting a bit insane in the next few weeks, but I will do my best to keep the story going quickly!! Don't forget to review.