Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight, any of the characters in Twilight, or anything related to the books and/or movies. If I did, I would be way too busy- doing dirty things with the Cullen boys- to sit down at my laptop and write this story. The scenes that I did borrow from Stephenie Meyer have been revamped to fit my story.

A/N: I had total writer's block during this chapter, so I hope that it turned out as good as I wanted it to. Also a side note to Sheyne Black: I really wanted to write a story where Edward and Alice don't cheat on Jasper and Bella. I think the idea of E/A is disgusting. LoL.

Learning to Live Again

Chapter Sixteen: Together

Jasper stopped his descent toward my lips and started laughing, his forehead resting against mine again. "Jasper, what's so fu-" I stopped my questioning when I heard Rosalie and Emmett start chasing each other up the stairs. I smiled up at Jasper. "I guess Emmett's feeling better about himself."

Jasper laughed harder than I had heard him laugh in days. His conversation must have gone better than I had expected it to go, because he had obviously had some weight lifted from his shoulders. I loved when Jasper felt completely at ease, because his eyes sparkled more than his skin ever could. I loved it even more that he felt that way around me.

"Let's go sit on the deck and I'll answer all the questions that are running through your head right now," Jasper suggested, already pulling me along with him as he guided us through the living room and out the front door. We took a seat on the bench that furnished the large back deck of the house. We sat in silence for a minute, both of us staring out at the woods where the Cullens hunted.

I curled my legs underneath myself and cuddled under Jasper's arm into his hard body. When he was this close to me, it was hard to remember the serious conversation that was about to take place. All I wanted to do was get lost in him. Lost in his eyes, in his kiss, in his body. I placed my hand on his chest and slid in between the buttons of his shirt, touching his cold skin.

"You were right earlier," he started, knowing I was content in my position against him. "Alice saw our decision to be together after she called to warn us about Laurent. She told me that she'd been getting mixed visions lately. Half of them were involving you and me as friends while there were others where I lost control and hurt you and even more where we both lost control and made love with each other."

I looked up at him, surprise on my face, concern on his own. I won't lie. Of course, I had thought of making love with Jasper. What sane girl wouldn't think of him in the bedroom?! I never knew that my thoughts would cause a vision for Alice, though. When I was having them, I never thought there could be any truth behind the hopes.

"She knew this was coming. It wasn't either of our faults, either, Bella. I know that you blame yourself, but Alice asked me to assure you that there was nothing you could do to stop our growing feelings for each other. Alice told me that when I almost attacked you on your birthday the future started to change. She saw you and Edward together less, but you were still becoming one of us," Jasper stopped and I saw the familiar look of guilt cross his face.

"It wasn't either of our faults," I repeated to him, placing my hand on his cheek and guiding his face to mine for a chaste kiss.

He smiled and pulled me tighter to him before continuing. "Alice and I have been together for so many years with no questions asked. She saw me before she knew me, so I don't think she was ever really in love with me but that she grew to love me over time. I clutched to her for support and strength, because this lifestyle was so difficult for me to adjust to. Don't get me wrong. I loved Alice with all my heart, as you loved Edward. But I know now who I was meant to be with."

Jasper looked down at me again and placed his hands on my face, framing it so I would look in his eyes. "You're the person I want to spend forever with, Bella. No one else gets to me the way you do. No one else draws me in like you can. I think that Alice's visions were meant to lead us to this point. She was supposed to find me to bring me to the Cullens so I would come to Forks. You were supposed to be with Edward so you can understand our history in a way that wouldn't frighten you. Everything happened so that we could be together."

My eyes were shining with tears by this point, touched by Jasper's words. It was true. I know that if I were to have met Jasper first, I would have been scared off by his intensity. He wouldn't have been able to control his thirst as Edward had that first day of school. We wouldn't be where we were right now, and I don't think that I could survive without Jasper as a permanent fixture in my existence.

There was so much that I wanted to say to him, but I couldn't articulate my feelings right. I wanted to tell him that even though I was terrified to get my heart broken, I couldn't resist him any longer. I wanted to explain to him that I was still reeling from everything that had happened this past year, but he was my light at the end of the tunnel. I wanted him to know that even through all my fear and hesitance, I knew that everything would be alright between us because of how we felt about each other. Because I have never been good with words, I settled for something to the point.

"I love you," I whispered into his face and smiled wide when I saw the look of surprise and pleasure cross his features.

"I love you more than anything in this world, Isabella Swan," he declared. I don't remember who started learning in for the kiss first. Jasper's cold lips covered mine with a soft caress. It was all innocent until I needed more.

I crawled onto his lap so I was straddling his legs and pressed my lips against his harder. My hands moved up to cling to his strong shoulders while his found their way to my waist, holding me securely on his lap so I wouldn't fall off the bench. He was always protecting me.

I pulled back slowly, catching his lower lip between my teeth and pulling on it slightly. We rested our foreheads together and looked into each other's eyes. I'm sure that the same love and lust were being reflected to him as I was seeing in his own deep, golden eyes. I moved my hands to tangle into his hair and pulled our faces together again, causing our lips to crash together.

This kiss was like the one in the woods, demanding and full of absolute pleasure. Our tongues danced off each other as I felt Jasper's hands move up from my waist and underneath my shirt. They rested on my back, underneath the strap of my bra. His hands were cold, but I was so hot that I didn't even shiver when they touched my bare skin. I started my own exploration and moved my hands from his hair down to the top buttons of his shirt and for the second time that day quickly undid the buttons the were covering his torso.

I broke my mouth away from his own and trailed kisses across his check to his earlobe and then down his jaw line and finally rested on his neck. I opened my mouth and raked my teeth down his neck while my hands found their way inside his now open shirt and skimmed across the distinct lines of his abs. I smiled against his cold skin when I heard Jasper growl from deep in his throat.

"Bella," he gasped out as I reached for the button of his jeans and easily unclasped it. He moved his hands from underneath my shirt and rested them on my hips, gripping me tightly and pulled me closer toward him.

I moaned loudly as I worked my mouth back up to his ear. "What, baby?" I asked, whispering in his ear, blowing my hot breath against his skin. My natural klutziness was finally kicking in as I fumbled with the zipper on his jeans, finding it impossible to move in our current position.

"We have… we have to stop, Bella," he choked out. He moved his head so that he could nuzzle my neck. I was used to hearing this argument, so I sighed in defeat and wrapped my arms around Jasper, leaning forward to rest my own head on his shoulder. I groaned, not hiding my frustration. Jasper placed a chaste kiss on my neck. "What's wrong?"

"I was just wondering if there was something about me that causes men to not want to be with me. Does my hair smell? Am I doing something wrong here?" I sat back, looking him in the eyes. I know that it was wrong to take out my frustrations on Jasper; however, I had never felt as hurt and rejected as I did right now. There had been so much building up to this one moment in my life, and I wasn't ready for anything else to get in the way.

"You're insane if you believe that for one moment." Jasper placed his hands on each side of my face, framing it and gently coaxing it closer to his own so that we were almost touching. "I love you, and I want nothing more than to be with you. There are just a couple obstacles that are currently in our way." He continued before I could question him. "First thing is that we are outside on our deck, and it is getting cold. Second thing is that we can't go inside because Rosalie and Emmett are in there right now doing the same thing we would like to be doing. I'm not about to compete with them during your first time. Which leads me to reason three. I love you too much to let your first time happen in a rush."

"Jasper, I'm really not the romantic girl you all take me for," I teased, "but I appreciate your reasoning. Thank you." I rested my head on his shoulder again and my eyes started to droop. Jasper must have felt that I was becoming tired, because he scooped me up in his arms and carried me into the house and up to his room.