A/N: There is a sort-of lemon at the end of this chapter. Nothing graphic, there probably won't be much of that in this story. It's more about their relationship than the sex. This is a bit of a filler chapter, but the action will pick up back soon! Thanks for reading!
Disclaimer: I own nothing but the story line, SM owns the characters I'm just having fun with them.
Jasper POV
I had never been this excited to go to school before. I had lost count of how many times I had repeated high school and how many college degrees I had; this felt like my very first day of school. Bella and I kissed Peter before we loaded up in the car with Edward to head into town. Peter was going to follow us on foot and we promised to sneak out to meet him during lunch.
I was a little surprised when Bella grabbed the keys and hopped into the driver's seat. I asked her if Peter let her drive his car very often and she turned her little nose up at me and told me it was her car. "He bought you a 1967 Mustang Fastback for your 16th birthday? Is he nuts? This car is a classic!"
Edward laughed from the backseat, "No, he bought the car for himself in 1967. Bella gave him the puppy dog eyes and he turned over the keys when we left Calgary. She is absolutely spoiled rotten."
"No, I'm not. I just have a very loving and giving mate. And besides, how can you call something a classic when you're over 100 years older than it is? That just doesn't make sense at all."
"Well, darlin', we didn't have cars back then. Their age is based on a different scale, kind of like dog years. And apparently Peter is on his own timescale as well- what does the man have against technology?"
Bella's laugh warmed me deep inside. "He gave up when 8-tracks went out of fashion. Edward couldn't get him to buy a cd player at all and he still won't touch a computer. The only reason he has a cell phone is because I bought it and programmed his numbers in and gave him a two-hour long tutorial on how to use the damn thing. I swear he is just a grouchy old man in a super hot body."
Edward and I couldn't contain our laughter at that. They told me a few more stories of Peter's anti-modern tendencies and then I brought up something I meant to ask last night.
"Bella, I know you said you were born here, but have you tried to find out if people are still looking for you? Are you a missing person or anything?"
She sighed and I felt some fear and bitterness when she answered. "I did a search and found out that my birth mom moved to Florida, she's married to some baseball player and has a whole new family. My father still lives here and he's the fucking chief of police. How is that for irony? But I didn't find any record of my birth or disappearance. I might be able to find something in the local newspaper from that time, but I don't know where to find that."
"We could check the school library- sometimes they keep an archive of things like that. If they don't, the newspaper office may have it. If it's something that you want to look into that is." I let her think in silence for the rest of the ride to school, her emotions were cycling too fast for me to keep up with. My mate had the strongest emotions of anyone I had ever felt, even Peter. I was really enjoying learning her personality through them.
We pulled up at school about twenty minutes early so we could get Bella's schedule rearranged. She ended up with all but two classes with me, and we had two of our afternoon classes with Edward. Walking out of the office with my arm around her and her other arm linked with Edward, she got a lot of stares and I heard way too many rude comments. Slut, whore, etc. I gritted my teeth and fought back a growl as the disgusting humans insulted my mate. Edward caught my eye and whispered at vampire speed, "Be grateful you don't have to hear their thoughts as well."
We stopped in front of Bella's first class. I had to leave her here with Edward but I was going to leave with a show. I backed her up against the lockers and kissed her long and deep. When I pulled away so she could breathe I ducked my head to her neck and breathed in her mouth-watering scent. I noticed she was doing the same and then she whispered, "I love that you're wearing Peter's shirt. Smelling both of you together is just heavenly. I can't get enough." I knew exactly what she meant- the only thing that smelled better than one of my mates, was both of them.
Peter had thrown a fit when I unpacked the clothes that Edward brought me. He burned all of the shirts Alice had bought me, along with my dress pants. I managed to hang onto my jeans because I was two inches taller than Pete and his jeans are too short for me. I didn't have a problem wearing Peter's shirts though, it made me feel closer to him.
I took off my jacket and wrapped it around her, "Here, take this, you can smell both of us this way." I felt her lust spike as she looked at my tight black t-shirt.
"Plus, the view is much better," she said as she winked and turned to follow Edward into the class. "See ya later, Major."
Damn, she's gonna kill me. What can I think of to get this raging hard-on to go down? Umm, dead puppies, skunk blood, Emmett in a speedo, Alice... there, that worked! Alice. Now I can go to class without a tent in my jeans. I walked into my least favorite class, history, and sat down next to Rose. She was bouncing in her seat with excitement, very different from her normal aloof personality.
"So, Jasper, my twin never made it home last night. Know anything about that?"
"Well, Mrs. McCarty, I'm not sure about Jasper Hale, but Jasper Whitlock spent the night wrapped in the arms of his mates." I couldn't keep the cheesy grin off my face and I felt Rose's joy and fascination.
"I've never seen you this happy before, brother. I'm so glad for you. You deserve the best." Her mood abruptly changed and she continued with a fierce scowl on her face. "I can't believe we let the stupid pixie manipulate us all these years. I'm so sorry for my part in this, I should have dragged you out of that house by your ear and taken you home to Peter. I should have never let us leave the first time. I'm so, so sorry, Jasper." Her sorrow and regret were palpable, so I sent her some peace and forgiveness.
"Don't dwell on it, Rose. We all fell for it; she was a master manipulator. If you want to make it up to me, just help me keep an eye on Bella until we take care of Alice. We can use all the help we can get, and I'd really like it if you two could become friends. I really don't want to lose you and Emmett when I leave with Pete and Bella."
"Of course, you can always count on me. You know Emmett will feel the same. You're our brother, no matter what."
"Thanks, Rose."
I settled back to daydream about my mates and got a warm feeling when I heard Bella's name called in her classroom, "Isabella Whitlock." I was so glad Peter gave her my name. It made me feel like I was connected to her even when I wasn't there.
When the bell rang, I jumped up and ran out of the room to meet Bella for our next class. She met me in the hallway and jumped straight into my arms and wrapped her legs around my waist, pulling me in for a kiss. Her warm hands were tangled in my hair and I felt a purr build in my chest when Bella pulled away in shock.
"You purred for me!" Her face was lit up in a blinding smile. "That's just, I mean, I... Thank you Jasper, that means so much to me." She broke off and kissed me again, with the same results. This time I had to pull back.
"Bella, darlin', I can't be purrin' in the middle of school. Somebody might notice. Let's get to class, ok? You can make me purr all you want to later on." I dropped her down the ground and put my arm around her to follow Edward to class. I laughed when I heard him mutter something about really needing to find himself a mate.
The rest of the morning was perfect, I had Bella in every class and I didn't pay a bit of attention to the teachers. We whispered to each other and passed notes back and forth, talking about anything and everything we could think of. Bella's mood was positive until we walked down the hall to the cafeteria. As we passed the library, her steps faltered and her mood shifted abruptly. "Bella, what's wrong?" I pulled her around to face me but she cut her eyes toward the library instead.
"Jasper, you know what you said earlier? I think I want to look. Will you help me?" Her voice was so small and unsure that I pulled her to me and hugged her tight.
"Of course I will. Wanna do it right now? We can skip lunch if you're not hungry."
"Yeah, I think I need to before I lose my nerve. Let's go."
We walked into the library and asked the elderly librarian if she could show us where the old newspapers were kept. She led us to another room off the back of the main room where there were large files of bound newspapers. We easily located the right year and pulled several days' worth of papers out to look. I took September 18, the day after Peter found her, and she took the 19th. We sat quietly flipping through the papers for several minutes when Bella's breathing picked up and I was slammed with her emotions of disbelief, abandonment, and misery. I jumped up and ran to her, wrapping my arms around her and trying to fill her with as much calm as I could manage. It didn't seem to making an impact so I tried to look at the article she was reading but she was hunched over it, blocking it from my view.
"Bella, darlin', you gotta talk to me. What is it, what did you find? Please, tell me."
After a few false starts and shuddering breaths, she raised her head and looked at me. "Alice was right. She did see me die. Isabella Swan is dead."
"What? What are you talking about? I don't understand, sugar." I reached down for my phone and texted Edward to let him know where we were in case Peter came looking for us. I was pretty sure he would feel her distress right now, as high as it was.
Just as I got the text sent I heard the door open behind us and Peter came rushing in. He looked at me and then at Bella, before scooping her up and sitting down in the chair and tucking her head under his chin. "Shh, baby girl. What is it, what's wrong? Let me help you, little one. Please? I love you so much."
I stood up and shut the door to give us some privacy and came to stand behind them. I finally got a look at the article she was reading.
Town Mourns Life Lost too Early
Forks gathered together as a community today to lay to rest the tiny daughter of police officer Charles Swan, and his wife, Renee. Isabella was found dead in her crib, just four days after she born. The coroner ruled her death to be of natural causes. Her parents declined to comment, appearing to be too grief-stricken to speak. A close family friend, Billy Black, said, "We will miss Isabella. She was a beautiful child, sent to earth for a brief moment to touch all our lives with joy. Her father loved her dearly and she was the light of his life. Her parents are devastated with her passing."
After the ceremony at Forks Christian Church, Isabella was buried in the community cemetery. The Forks Gazette sends our condolences to this dear family.
"They didn't even try to look for me. They got the coroner to lie for them and they killed me. What kind of sick people did I come from?" Her voice was hollow and her pain was still sharp. I looked at Peter and he was positively livid. His eyes were black and he was shaking with rage. I reached for Bella and told him to go- I would meet him outside.
I called Edward and told him to follow Pete out while I put the newspapers back up. I debated keeping the article about Bella but decided against it. It wasn't a happy memory for her to keep. I needed to get her out of here so she can work through this. I was seriously regretting bringing up this whole idea, I'm not sure if knowing was actually better than not knowing in this case.
With the room back in order, I turned to my beautiful little mate, steeling myself against the onslaught of her unchecked pain. Her eyes were open but she wasn't seeing me, or anything else in the room. I gathered her in my arms and began purring, this time for comfort instead of from pleasure. I pulled her face into my neck and began speaking softly.
"Bella? Sweetheart? I need you to let me in, please. I can't help you if you won't let me, please don't push me away. I know you're hurtin' right now and I want to help but my power's not gettin' through. Listen to me, it's Jasper, it's your mate, darlin'. Please let me help you. We need to go see Peter, he's hurtin' too, but I need to get you calm enough that we can leave the building without any problems. Can you hear me, baby? Please?"
I finally felt her fingers clench my shirt and she took a deep staggering breath before whispering, "Jasper?"
"Yeah darlin', it's me. I'm gonna try to calm you some now, ok? Don't fight me please." When I tried again, my gift worked and I felt her relax in my arms and her breathing steady out. She tucked her nose closer to my neck and breathed deeply a few times before she lifted her head.
"Can we go now? I need my Pete." Her voice was so small, so broken, I had to fight back a wave of rage at her so-called parents. I pulled her to her feet, put my arm around her shoulders, and we quickly walked out to the parking lot. Edward was already behind the wheel but Peter was pacing back and forth with his hands knotted in his hair. When we came outside he ran over and picked Bella up, holding her close to him and whispering in her ear. She finally started crying as he spoke to her.
"Baby girl, I'm so sorry. I love you so much, you know that, right? You are everything to me, I would never let you go. I would never stop searching for you if you were taken from me. Your father was a worthless prick; I should have killed when I had the chance. He never deserved you. You were always meant to be here with me, with us, with your mates. You belong with us, little one, and we are so happy to have you, so happy to love you."
I tried my best to choke down the pain I felt at his words. This was about Bella, not about me. She needed reassurance and support right now. I took a deep breath and walked over to put my arms around them both. "Let's get out of here, ok? She'll feel better at home." I turned and opened the door so Pete and Bella could slip into the back seat. When I got in the front Edward caught my eye and sent me sympathy and understanding, so I knew he heard my thoughts.
The ride home was silent, apart from Bella's sniffles and Pete's occasional purring. I slowly let up on the calm I was sending her so she could process her emotions and work through them. When she reached up and laid her hand on my shoulder and sent me her thanks, my heart warmed and I realized just how much I already loved this little human. I couldn't wait to tell her.
As soon as the car stopped, I pulled Bella out and wrapped her in my arms. "Are you feelin' any better, darlin'? I'm truly sorry for makin' you go through that. I should have never brought it up. Can you forgive me?"
She looked up at me, shocked. "Are you serious, Jasper? Why would I blame you for my worthless parents? I'm glad you were there for me and that I wasn't alone when I found out. It was something I needed to know and now I can move past it. Thank you for helping me, really. It means a lot to me. I love you, Jasper."
Now it was my turn to be shocked. I checked her emotions and she was sending me strong, pure, love. I pulled her up and kissed her hard, my tongue taking complete control of her mouth. She groaned and pulled her legs up to wrap around my waist, grinding hard against me. My right hand left her waist to snake up under her shirt and palm her breast. She arched into my hand and threw her head back, exposing her throat to me. I ducked my head to kiss and nip up her neck, when I felt Peter come up behind me and push his hips into mine. "I need you," he whispered roughly, "I need both of you."
Bella POV
Jasper carried me into the house with Peter trailing close behind us. I had no idea where Edward disappeared to, and I couldn't find it in me to care at the moment. I sucked and licked on Jasper's neck all the way to the bedroom. His skin tasted heavenly, a spicy mint with another sweet flavor I couldn't quite recognize. He laid me carefully on the bed and pulled back to look at me. "Are you sure, Bella? I don't want to rush you."
"I'm sure Jasper, I need you. I need you right now. Please, make me yours." He nodded and then turned to look at Peter, who pulled him in for a kiss. I was never going to get used to that. I could sit and watch them together all day and never get tired of it. They think I slept through their little love fest last night, but I woke up and watched them together; it was so beautiful I found myself crying. I wanted to love them the way they loved each other. I felt Jasper's insecurity in the car and he needed to know that he was ours and we were his. He didn't belong anywhere other than right here with us.
I wasn't even embarrassed when Peter told him, "It's her first time, so be gentle, ok?" Jasper looked shocked but I just smiled at him and nodded, trying to pull him back down to me. Tasting Peter in Jasper's mouth made my desire shoot up more than it already was. "You mean, you haven't?" His voice trailed off as he looked between us.
I smiled at Peter and he looked back at Jasper and said, "I told you, we were waiting for you. We've always been waiting for you. We love you, let us show you that."
Jasper was a tender, selfless lover and I blossomed under his attention. I felt nothing but pleasure, despite his larger-than-average size. He used his gift to take my pain and replace it with desire. When Peter came up behind him and the three of us were finally one, Jasper bounced our love and lust between us until we all fell over the edge together. As his cold seed spilled into me, he ducked his head to my chest and started sobbing. "I love you so much, I love both of you so much. This is so much more than I could have ever hoped to deserve. Thank you."
We curled up on the bed, with me tucked securely between my boys, and I drifted off to sleep. Just before I was gone I told them, "I do hope you know I'm never going back to school again." Their laughter carried me off to sweet dreams of cold, strong arms and my two perfect mates.