A/N: This chapter is a bit deep. Jasper spills some of the beans about Bella's past. Hope you enjoy! Oh, and don't get too mad at him, he's a good guy!

Disclaimer: I own the coffee table my laptop is currently sitting on, oh and my 2002 Ford Focus too. SM owns everything else and is amazing.

Chapter 6-Jack Daniels and Punched Walls

BPOV

Friday was the day Edward said he would do my next tattoo next. He hadn't asked me about the words yet and I was grateful that he wasn't a nosey bugger.

Jasper nodded in agreement when he realized what I was getting, he understood. No questions asked.

It was now Friday evening and I was ready to get my ink. This tattoo meant a lot to me. It was something for me and represented my past and what I wasn't going to be anymore. I wasn't the scared little girl that let guys walk all over her to feel loved. I knew what love felt like, and even though Edward and I hadn't gotten to that level of saying it yet, I knew it was there.

I would never let another man treat me that way ever again.

Edward suggested we do my tattoo in the back room so we could have some privacy from everyone else. I agreed. Some alone time with Edward was too good to pass up. Over the last week or so, Edward and I spent a lot of time together but never really alone. Well, that was a lie, we did go out on date night and spent a fare amount of time making out in the back room but I couldn't get enough of him.

We were always with the whole group, which I didn't really mind as I got to know Emmett, Rosalie and Alice even better, but it was Edward that I really wanted to get to know. Get to know ALL of him, if you know what I mean.

I situated myself in his chair with my forehead leaning against the chair rest so he could work on my neck. I put my hair in a high ponytail so it was out of the way and ready for him. Edward was sanitizing the area, getting ready to start, when I felt his hands begin to massage my neck, under my hairline and then down to my shoulder blades. He didn't have his gloves on yet so I knew he wanted to play a little first.

I was so fine with that idea.

His hands on my neck felt so fucking amazing. I leaned into his touch as a low moan came from me unnanounced. That just encouraged Edward to keep going, which thank heavens he did.

"So, again Cullen, do you take all the girls back here to massage before their latest ink?" I asked playfully as his hand stopped all movement.

"No Swan. Only ones that are as beautiful as you, and are MINE. And that last bit I can only say about one person." He placed a chaste kiss on my collarbone from behind as his hands moved lower on my back. "And the only beautiful ones would be you. Just you."

Before I knew it, Edward was sitting on the table behind me straddling it like I was and massaged my back wrapping his arms around me to rub my stomach from behind. His hands felt like fire on my skin. So good. So fucking good.

"I don't know what it is about you letting me ink you, but it's such a damn turn on." He whispered in my ear.

Yup, that about done it. We would need to sanitize the table where I was sitting after this.

He massaged up my stomach and went under my shirt massaging up my sides, rubbing his fingers under my breasts. After a few minutes of this torture, he finally lifted the bra cups up and exposed my breasts. He was finally going to find what Alice had done.

It only took him a week or so. Not bad.

Edward began massaging my left breast with one hand rubbing just above my clit through my pants with his right. And oh did it feel good. He switched and had just cupped my right breast in his hand, when his breathing hitched and he let out the hottest moan I'd ever heard.

"I fucking knew it! I knew you got your tit pierced!" He yelled. "That little pixie said it was your belly button, but I knew you were more of a sex kitten than that!" He kissed my neck and collar bone as I leaned more towards him.

"And do you like my new piercing, Mr. Cullen?" I asked pushing myself into his back realizing just exactly what that piercing did to him. He twisted the barbell around in his fingers as he pinched my nipple. Wow that felt ten times better than when I did it.

Edward grabbed my arms turning my body as fast as he could so I was now facing him, straddling the table in front of him. He pushed me back so I was leaning against the headrest. With my bra still pushed up he sat there and stared at my chest, licking his lips as if there were brownies plastered there.

Did I mention that my man liked him some brownies?

Edward took my piercing between his thumb and finger twisting it while he stared into my eyes. His were dark with lust. I cried out in pleasure as he fondled my other breast at the same time. He leaned forward and took the nipple ring in his mouth pulling on it just a little, which made me moan louder that I wanted too. Edward sucked on my nipples one at time, going back and forth making sure to pay them each the same amount of attention. Then he stopped and sat back to stare at me again.

He looked at me like he was the hunter and I was the prey. Rrr.. Is all I had to say to that. Game on!

"You're getting the other one done too." He said with finality. Not a question but a demand. "Tonight, when I'm done with your neck. And I'm going to do it for you."

I wanted to stand and salute him, obeying his every command.

"Oh, and you do piercings too, Mr. Cullen? Aren't you just a multi talented man now." I wanted to get the other one done, but wanted to see how this one went first.

He nodded his head up and down as I started laughing. The more I laughed the more intense his stare became, probably because my laughing caused my chest to bounce no doubt. His eyes were glued to the twins as if he'd never seen a pair in his life. I knew better than that.

I mean come on, look at the man. He pretty much screams sex. I have no doubt in my mind he's had his fair of titties to stare at before I came along.

Edward kissed each nipple once more then pulled my bra and shirt to cover me once again, making me wonder what the fuck was going on in that head of his. As fast as he turned on the heat, he turned it off.

Not sure if I was ready for that to be over. My crotch said the same thing.

I knew that we should just stop and get on with my tattoo, but now I had a pain between my legs that I would surely have to take care of when I got home. Alone.

A few times.

Better stop for batteries on the way.

I leaned in to kiss him before I turned around and strattled the table with my head leaning against the head rest.

Edward did the outline on my neck showing me in the mirror the two symbols that would represent who I am for the rest of my life. It was perfect. I leaned my head down again and Edward got to work.

The sound of his needle made me jump but I was immediately calmed by his hand that was resting on my neck. The first prick hurt but I found that I welcomed the pain, knowing the outcome I would be receiving when all was said and done.

"Bella, if you don't want to talk about it right now that's fine," he started. I wasn't sure if I was ready to have this conversation, knowing exactly what he was getting at. "But I really want to know what this tattoo symbolizes." He rubbed his gloved fingers over my neck trying to relax my tense muscles.

I thought about it for a minute realizing that this was eventually going to come out, why not now?

"My past, Edward." I took a deep breath knowing that little bit of an explanation wasn't going to be good enough. " I had two relationships before I met you and neither turned out well for me. Lets just say I was more of a piece of meat or punching bag to those guys than someone to love. I'm ready to put it all behind me and move on. I moved here to start a new chapter in my life and I intend to do so. These symbols will help me do that. I hated what those guys did to me, I still do. How they treated me. And I'm never letting that happen to me again." I caught the few traitor tears that made themselves present before Edward could notice.

I felt his hands clench up and heard what sounded like a growl being released from deep in his chest. He had a right to know, some of it at least. If he wanted to have any kind of a relationship with me he needed to know what he was in for and how damaged I really was.

I was broken in more ways than one and if we had any chance of making things work, I knew that he'd eventually be asking these questions and I'd have to answer them. Whether I was ready or not.

Edward was quiet for several moments. I almost started to wonder if he was going to continue. Or if he could continue.

I laid some heavy shit on him without giving much detail. I could only imagine what was going through his mind.

I felt him kiss my collarbone, my neck relaxing with his touch. He nodded his head and got started. We made small talk during my session never mentioning what I'd just spilled, but I could tell he was upset and was trying hard to control himself.

After my tattoo was in place, I decided to head home. I figured that my fucked up little statement, my past, may have been a little too much for him to handle right now. He probably needed some space to absorb things. And I needed some space too.

I told Edward that we'd do the piercing another time, which he looked sad about but nodded in agreement. I kissed his cheek and grabbed my stuff. I said good-bye to the guys and made my way home.

I definitely needed a drink, or something.

EPOV

Bella was coming in for her neck tattoo today. As excited as I was to place my art on her again, I was also very curious as to what the symbols stood for.

So I asked.

"...Lets just say I was more of a piece of meat or punching bag to those guys than someone to love. And I'm never going to let that happen again." That was the answer she had given me.

She wasn't telling me the whole story, which made my mind go into overdrive. What had she been through? What wasn't she telling me? Was it too personal or did she think I couldn't handle it?

What ever it was, I knew I wouldn't look at her any different. God knows my past was full of skeletons as well. And eventually they were going to make themselves know and we would be in this same place.

Would she accept me for who I was? Fuck.

I could feel my grip tighten on my tools and I think I growled. Knowing more about this girl was intriguing and hard at the same time. She had a dark past and even though I knew I wouldn't like what I was going to hear, I wanted to know everything about her.

The thought of someone hurting my beautiful Bella made me want to lose my shit.

At first it bothered the fuck out of me how close Jasper was to her. I wondered if there was anything romantic between them. I guess that was a main reason that I kept my distance those first few weeks. But after hearing what she now said, I could understand why they were so close. He'd been there for her in more ways than I knew and I found myself becoming grateful that Jasper was in her life. To protect her from what I didn't yet know about. She obviously trusted Jasper. I needed her to trust me too.

Time I guess, is what it will take for her to trust me with her past. I guess trust is what was going to take me to spill about my past too.

After the little internal battle that I had with myself I got to work on her ink. We talked a little here and there while I worked, but I never brought up the subject again. I know she thinks I didn't see it, but she was crying when she told me. I didn't want to see my beautiful Bella cry. So I let it drop.

As I continued to work on her art, I found myself grow angrier. Not at Bella. God not at Bella. But at the fuckers that thought it was Ok to treat a lady the way she'd been treated.

I silently vowed to myself that if I ever had the chance, I'd get payback for her.

Bella abruptly left after her tattoo was finished. I wanted to pierce her other tit tonight, but nodded when she said we would do it another time. I could tell by the way she wouldn't look at me that she was having an internal battle of her own. This was probably something that she hadn't discussed with many people.

Not a subject you bring up on a first date or when out for coffee. So I let it go.

I let her leave knowing that if I gave her some time to think about things a little she would let me in.

Even though this wasn't the time to be thinking about this, my dick had been twitching ever since Bella had gone into the piercing room with Alice the first time. I was baffled when I couldn't see what she had pierced, but I let my imagination run wild. I knew that it was her tit she got pierced the other day with Alice. That little vixen. I made a mental note to thank my pixie of a sister for the fun I was going to have with it.

OK, I needed to stop thinking with my dick and remember what Bella had told me about.

Yup, that made me go limp fast.

After Bella left I couldn't control the anger I was feeling about what she told me. I paced the room letting my mind replay over and over what she said. I punched the wall not giving a damn about the blood that was trailing down my hand. I welcomed the pain. The pain was almost the high that I was looking for.

Back in the day, I welcomed pain any chance I got.

I had to remember that I wasn't that guy anymore and if I went around punching holes in walls I wasn't going to get Bella to trust me. And I would have Emmett on my ass yet again, and I sure as hell didn't want that.

I looked over at the wall and saw a nice dent about the size of my hand, crimson around the edges from my blood. Yeah that wasn't going to go un-noticed. Great! Now I was going to have to fix the wall now too.

Alice must have heard, and sooner rather than later, the door swung open, she was standing there with her hands on her hips staring down at my hand.

"What the fuck E?" Alice ran over to me trying to cradle my bloody hand in hers but I didn't want her sympathy. I quickly pulled away from her touch telling her I could take care of it myself. "What happened with you and Bella? You didn't hurt her Edward, did you?"

How the fuck could Alice think I hurt her? That was the last thing I ever thought about doing to my Angel, especially after what I heard tonight.

"Fuck Alice! No I didn't hurt her! She told me what the tattoo I did today meant, and I'm having a hard time dealing with it, ok?" I ran my hand under the water and cleaning it off the best I could. I sat down in a chair and rested my head in my hands. "She's been hurt in the past Alice. By guys. That's all I Know."

Alice nodded in agreement, but didn't pry. "I thought something might have happened. I asked Jazz about their closeness, but he didn't go into to much detail either. Just that he feels the need to protect her."

"I need to talk to him. Maybe he'll let me in so I can help her." I got up and started pacing the little room. "Damnit Allie! The thought of her being hurt just makes me want to, I don't know, kick the shit out of something or someone! I need a fucking drink!"

I reached in the fridge and grabbed the bottle of Jack and took a big swig from the bottle. Alice sat with me for a few minutes rubbing my leg before I bolted up and made my way past her going back into the shop. I downed half the bottle of Jack before dragging my ass out, knowing that if Jasper did tell me anything, I needed padding to get me through. I sat in the chair next to Jasper who'd just finished with his last client of the day and was getting ready to close up. I handed him the bottle and he took a swig, handing it back to me, with no question as to why he was drinking with me.

He stared at me with wide eyes. He knew I knew something.

"What happened to B, Jasper?" I asked looking down at the bottle of Jack.

He was silent for a long time, staring at the floor, then at Alice, and finally at me.

"Bro, it's not my story to tell. If she wants you to know, then she'll tell you." Jasper replied standing up to finish cleaning up his station.

"She said that she was treated like a piece of meat and a punching bag, and would never let it happen again." I took another swig then lit up a cigarette not giving a flying fuck that we were indoors and I really shouldn't have been smoking in here.

I threw the lighter at Jasper. He lit his own cigarette and took a long pull.

Jasper ran his hands over his face then stuck them in his pockets after he put out his cigarette. He was silent for a minute before he sunk into his chair and leaned back closing his eyes.

He stuck his hand out for the bottle of Jack and I willingly gave it up. Alice and Emmett were in earshot trying to look busy but both wanted to know as bad as I did.

"Fuck Cullen." He took another swig from the bottle before handing it back. "I can't believe I'm telling you this. But since she gave a shitty excuse for what happened, I suppose you deserve to know more of the story, before you go punching anything else."

Jasper eyed up my bloody knuckles and gave me a head nod.

"It started when she was 16. Charlie had just been killed," Jasper started to explain. "Her and this loud mouth Lauren went to a college party in Houston, thinking they were hot shit being invited. But seriously, who in their fucking right mind invites 16 year old girls to a party like that?" He took another swig and continued. For as much as we both had downed by this point, we should have been drunk, or at least buzzed, but I'd never felt more sober in all my life. "That was the night she met James."

" James was a tall mofo and she thought he was handsome or some shit, and oh yeah, he was 20. She fell for him immediately and looked at him like he was the best thing in life. Her mother was never around and she craved for someone to love her. I loved Bell. But not the way she needed to be. He gave her a lot of attention and told her she was beautiful. She fell for him hard thinking that he loved her. I tried to tell her what a fool he was, but she didn't want to hear it. She was young and naive and wanted to spend all her time with him. She was living with me after Charlie past away and would tell Mama that she was staying with Lauren on the weekends and drive up to Houston to stay at his apartment. My Mama didn't even think twice about letting her go thinking she needed some 'girl time'. Bell would say things were going great but never gave too much detail. She would come home stoned and looked tired as all hell...and then the bruises started to appear."

He lit another cigarette and threw me the lighter. I lit one as well and threw the lighter to Emmett, who was now sitting with us listening intently. "She would always shy away from it and say that she fell when she was high. He got her started on drugs and they were her excuse for everything I questioned her on. But when you could literally pick out the long fingers that were wrapped around her arms in blue and purple, I knew there was more going on than she was letting on. The more I pushed her to talk to me about what was going on, the more she pulled away. She started to wear long sleeved shirts in the middle of summer and covering her neck. We used to lie together at night talking, but when I would rub her back, she'd flinch. One night I got enough balls up to peak at her back in the middle of the night while she was sleeping. There, covering her beautiful skin, were the darkest slashes I'd ever seen. I cried for her. I actually fucking cried and am not ashamed to admit it. I didn't even have ask her about them that time, because I already knew." Jasper became tense thinking of the memory that I'm sure haunted him.

Alice came to sit in his lap and rubbed the back of his neck trying to comfort him. Emmett got up and switched the closed sign on and locked the doors before sitting down next to me again. I took another swig from the bottle and handed it back to Jasper who did the same before continuing.

"About 6 months into their relationship, I went up with her for the weekend wanting to see what this fool was about. But more so because I wanted to make sure she was OK. She was reluctant about me being there, but finally agreed knowing that I wasn't going to back down. James apparently didn't know that I was coming and got really pissed. As soon as he seen us walk through his door, he hit her square in the face right in front of me and yelled at her for being a whore. I pulled Bella behind me and got in his face but being 16 and not having the experience he had, I got the shit beaten out of me after the first swing. His friend was there and laughed the whole fucking time like he was enjoying the show in front of him. I grabbed Bell and I got us the hell out of his apartment afraid of what he might do to her if I was unconscious. Bell and I left and drove home in silence. She was mad at me at first for dragging her out of there, saying that it was her fault for bringing me. But I think she was finally starting to see what he really was. She admitted to me that it wasn't the first time James had done something like that and that she didn't want to have to deal with it anymore. But for some fucked up reason, she thought he loved her. He called her for weeks begging for her to talk to him, but I didn't let her talk to him."

I bent over letting my elbows rest on my knees as I ran my hand through my hair. "On her 17th birthday, a bunch of us went out to celebrate when James showed up. He begged Bella to talk to him, and she stupidly agreed getting in the car with him and leaving. I will never forgive myself for letting her leave with him." Jasper looked torn up. He was trying to collect his thoughts before he spoke again. I could feel my jaw clenching, my hands tightening around the bottle of Jack.

" She never told me exactly what happened to her that night, but when she came home around 4am, clothes in tatters, face swollen and bloody along with the rest of her body I knew it wasn't good. I wrapped my coat around her exposed body as she fell into my arms. She was such a mess that she couldn't even stand. He'd left her out in the middle of the fucking country without shoes and she'd walked for hours to get home. She didn't want to go to the doctor saying she was too embarrassed. We left that night and spent the next three weeks in a hotel while she healed so that no one knew what happened to her. Mama thought we had snuck away together as boyfriend/girlfriend and grounded me for a month after. It was worth it to take care of her and know that she was safe. We both had to take summer school that year to make up for our absence. Bell cried herself to sleep for months, and all I could do was hold her and tell her it was over and he was gone. Unfortunately I was wrong."

Jasper shook his head as he kissed Alice's shoulder. I felt nauseous with every word he spoke. "He came back for her a few months later. But this time I was ready for him. I never left her alone after that night, so when he came for her, apologizing, saying it would never happen again, I beat him with a baseball bat until a neighbor called the cops. Bella didn't want anyone knowing what had happened, so no charges were pressed against him, but I spent the next month in Juvie, praying every day that she was Ok. He never came back, and as soon as we graduated high school we moved to Chicago so that he couldn't find her."

Everyone was silent for a long time. So silent, that a pin being dropped could be heard.

"Wow," Alice said as she rubbed his cheek. "I don't know what to say Jasper." She hugged him tightly around the neck as he wrapped his arms around her, holding them together in a tight hug.

"That isn't even the end of it." He said. My stomach dropped and I thought I was literally going to be sick. After hearing what he'd just shared about Bella's past, I didn't even know if I wanted to hear anything else. I was pissed and wanted to break something or someone. This James was going to pay for what he'd done to my Bella. I took a few calming breaths knowing that I needed to relax if Jasper was going to continue. He stared at me wanting the Ok to continue. I nodded in his direction and sat back in my chair.

"Bella was in her second year of college when she met Jake. He was Charlie's friend Billy's son and she'd known him when they were younger but hadn't seen him in years. They started off as friends, and she brought him around the apartment. We all began hanging out and I thought he was chill. About 6 months after they started dating, she called me in tears saying that she had fallen and broke her arm. Bella is clumsy, so I figured she really had fallen and went to pick her up from Jake's to take her to the ER to get it set. When I got to Jake's, I wondered why he hadn't offered to take her; he just sat there and continued to smoke his bong. Bella played it off as he was too stoned to drive. It ate at me, but again, the more that I mentioned it, the more she pulled away."

" 2 months later, Bella was walking around in a tank top and I seen the bruises on her back. 'I fell again' is what she said. 'I drank too much and fell down the stairs'. I didn't believe it, but she begged me to let it go. I asked her not go over to Jake's alone anymore claiming that I was lonely at home by myself. Really I just wanted to keep any eye on her. She agreed probably to pacify me, but whatever. One night Jake was over, and they were both hammered. He got really upset with her and pushed her into the glass coffee table shattering it below her with his force, the glass cutting deeply into her hands and back. Bella asked me to let it go, but I was done. I promised her she was never going to be hurt again, and I broke my promise. I beat the shit out of him and threw him out. Bella had to have hundreds of stitches after that. I convinced her to talk to a therapist whom she started going to and eventually began to get stronger. She saw herself as weak for so long, but not anymore. Jake had made himself present here and there, but didn't attempt to get near her when I was around. Bella took all of her classes online after that and spent all of her time at the shop with me. Paul and Embry kept an eye on her if I wasn't around. Jake did try to get her a few more times. And that was when I decided I needed a change. After she wrote her book, he followed her to her book signings. I quit working at the shop and took up her manager/body guard position full time. He and James pop up here and there, although the last time was nearly a year ago. We haven't seen either in the past couple of months. I don't think they realized she moved." Jasper looked up at me to see what my reaction was.

" So now you know most of it. If Bell feels comfortable enough, she'll tell you the rest. It really isn't my place. I've probably said too much already. And if you ever wonder why I'm so protective of her, I think you can figure it out now."

Jasper took another swig from the almost empty bottle of Jack and then pushed the bottle hard into my chest. "And Edward man.... if you ever lay one finger on her, I won't hold back, and I won't apologize. You got it?"

"Whitlock," I took another swig. "If I ever hurt her, I would ask you not to hold back."

"I got your back Whitlock. I'd even help you kick the shit out of my little brother." Emmett said playfully trying to lighten the mood. Wouldn't be the first time.

"Jasper, when was the last time Bella saw James?" I asked, not really wanting to know, but curiosity was killing me.

"He followed her to a book signing about a year ago when were in St. Louis. Me and another guy kicked him out. I made her promise me that if he ever came near her again, she'd finally let me get a restraining order on the fucker. She agreed." He said looking relieved. "And Jake, well, he comes around every once in a while, but he'd never try anything with me around. And I suppose with either of you." He looked at both Emmett and I as we nodded our heads in agreement.

I ran my hands through my hair thinking about everything he'd said and looked up to see Bella standing in the doorway. She must have used the key that I'd given her.

Her eyes were full of tears. Her face panicked and worried.

I'm not sure how much she heard, but she new we'd been talking about her.

My eyes locked on hers as she looked as if she was about to have a panic attack. I didn't want her to think we were talking about her behind her back, but I had to fucking know and Jasper was willing to give me information that she wasn't.

Bella stared at me through her tear soaked eyes. I would've given anything to know what she was thinking, and prayed that this wouldn't push her away.

A/N: So what do you think is running through Bella's mind? Is she going to take a step back and regress?