A/N As usual, don't read this if you're under 18

Stephanie Meyer owns all of Twilight

Unbeta'd, so all the mistakes are mine, and I found quite a few in last chapter, some of which I might have time to fix when I post this chapter.

Chapter 6 – Unresolved Sexual Tension

Edward

Does brain melting kill you? If so, I'm probably terminal

Jasper in a sweaty, dirty undershirt… Jasper bending over… Jasper drinking from a water bottle… Jasper pouring water on his head…

For the past 5 hours, Edward had been hyper-aware of the fact that Jasper Whitlock was on the construction site, and would be for 3 weeks. He also kept getting glances of Jasper that redirected his blood-flow dramatically. To make matters worse, there was a documentary crew who was going to be filming him for portions of every workday. They'd been hanging around for 3 hours or so, ever since they finished with their initial set up shots.

After 'meeting' Jasper in the kitchen, Edward had been assigned to nail gun duty. Jasper had sent him off with Joe to learn about stud finding, and how to attach sheetrock properly. (Edward was relatively certain he had the stud finding down, I mean, look at Jasper. Edward could find Jasper in a pitch black room with only the sense of smell.) Edward had never had to do construction work, so he paid close attention to everything Joe said. He was especially attentive once he learned that the nail gun operated on a resistance trigger. That meant that if it was on, and you leaned the head against anything (say a leg or shoe) it would shoot out a nail. The contraption also weighed about 20 pounds.

After the first hour hoisting it up, Edward's arms began to grow weary. Sweat dripped off his limbs and down his back. Joe stopped by to make sure Edward was managing and actually complimented the quality of work. Edward was a perfectionist by nature, and even though the boards were rough and the gun felt like an anvil, he was diligent in his measurements and made sure he wouldn't compromise the quality of the building. Joe advised Edward to take a break, so Edward shut down the air pump that ran the gun and set it down gingerly. Joe told him where the tent had been set up with plenty of water and shade and told Edward to take 15 minutes off.

While Edward was on break, he noticed Jasper walking around the perimeter of the building. Sometime after Edward had last seen him, Jasper had doffed his outer shirt, and his arms rippled with muscle and gleamed with sweat as he carried a massive beam toward the house. Edward's jaw slackened as he took in Jasper's extremely low slung jeans and the way the undershirt clung to his sweat-soaked torso. Jasper disappeared into the structure. Edward realized that if he hadn't been on break, he would have seen Jasper up close. He practically salivated while plotting ways of ending his break early without Joe getting angry. Edward knew the breaks were necessary to maintain a safe working environment, but the slow march of time made him itch to get closer to Jasper.

As the 15 minutes crawled by, Jasper kept making trips in and out of the building, carrying in beams that would help to support the roof. Edward's eyes were locked onto the tall blond every time. Once, Jasper had a bad grip and jumped back, letting the board fall. He bent over to pick up the beam and Edward moaned at the view. Jasper retrieved the board and disappeared inside once more. This time, he didn't come back out. Edward looked at his watch and realized that his time was up. He wiped the sweat off his body with a towel and slathered on some more sun-block before returning to the house to pick up his nail gun duty once more.

Edward worked for half an hour before his arms grew sore. He set the gun down and stood, stretching out so that he could prepare for the next round of sheeting. He glanced out at the break area and saw Jasper. The blond had his hair caught back behind his head and he was drinking from a water bottle. Edward felt his pants grow tighter as he watched Jasper's adam's apple bob up and down with each swallow. Jasper's undershirt was nearly transparent with sweat, and Edward could see his nipples, dark against the light fabric. Edward thought it was the sexiest image in the world, but then, Jasper lifted the water bottle up and tilted it out over his face and hair. The undershirt was soaked and clung to Jasper's muscles like a second skin; Edward groaned and took off his hardhat, running his hands through his hair so that they wouldn't be free to wander down to his crotch. He felt his entire body flush with arousal as he watched the blond shake pull the elastic from his hair and shake it out, spraying drops of water everywhere.

Jasper was unaware of the effect he was having on Edward. Jasper had been around sweaty, shirtless construction workers enough to be adept at avoiding temptation. The fact that Edward was on his site, shirtless, and undoubtedly sweaty was already affecting the blond, but he'd managed to time his trips for supplies and his break so that he wouldn't see Edward if he didn't look for the other man. Jasper couldn't afford the distraction of looking. Not when he was trying to take things slow.

Edward saw Jasper settling his hard hat back on and turned to his sheetrock quickly, not wanting to be caught ogling the foreman. Jake and the documentary crew soon came into the site to find Edward. They were tasked with capturing some of the work Edward did every day. They'd gotten some shots of the young man hauling lumber around and had met with the rest of the workers, one by one. They would gather testimonials from each as the weeks drew on. Luckily, there was an informal rotation of break times so that only 2 or 3 people were off the site at once. For the first two hours, every fifteen minutes more volunteers would take their breaks. Part of this was to give their muscles a rest, but more importantly, it allowed everyone a chance to cool down every few hours so they could avoid heat exhaustion.

"Hey, Edward," Jake greeted the redhead amiably. He had been looking forward to getting a chance to film the young businessman. Edward was notoriously press-shy, though he was very good on camera. Jake had a small crush on the redhead, and relished the three weeks he would spend with Edward, filming him and interacting for hours every day.

Nobody knew if Edward dated. There were rumors about TanyaDenali, but the two were never seen together in public outside of company functions. Edward was rumored to be celibate, gay, or a clandestine fetishist (depending on who you asked).

Edward had been expecting this interaction, and as much as he felt his volunteer work was suffering, he was determined to put his best foot forward and cooperate fully with the documentarians. The last thing he or the company needed was an angry filmmaker casting him as some sort of coldhearted bastard or snob.

"Mr. Black," Edward set the tool down and turned with a smile, very aware that his less-than-impressive physique was on display.

Jacob disagreed with Edward, gaze lingering a little too long on the bare chest of the businessman-turned-construction worker. Jake flicked his eyes back up to Edward's politely distant expression, "You've been on site for several hours, Mr. Cullen, what is your impression so far?" Edward thought about the people he'd met.

"The professionals on site definitely know what they're doing. It seems like there's a good balance between skilled and unskilled labor. When I arrived, I started out by simply bringing in boards so that Joe, the carpenter, could continue his detailed craft without having to worry about materials. The foreman, Jasper Whitlock, told me to report to Joe, and ever since, I've been affixing sheetrock to the walls."

Jake nodded, enjoying the detailed and informative answer, "What are your impressions of the other volunteers?"

Edward again considered his answer for a moment, "I've only met a handful of people so far, but it's obvious that they all feel passionately about the shelter. They come from all walks of life, there's a 15 year old high school student, a 60 year old retiree, a single mother, a former construction worker. There are many jobs that don't require more than a few minutes training. There are 17 volunteers and only 4 professionals on the site. We could probably even double the number of volunteers without running out of things to do."

Jake gestured to the wall behind Edward, "Could you explain to us what you are doing currently?"

Edward grinned, "Sure thing, step into my office," he turned around, picking up the inactive nail gun, "The walls are constructed of lumber with crossbeams for stability. Once the frame is up, if there isn't a need to put in plumbing or wiring, boards are put up in between the beams, insulation is rolled on, and the walls are covered with sheetrock. I'm using an air powered nail gun to fasten the sheetrock to the vertical beams in the walls. It's easy work. Anyone who can lift 20 pounds can do it. All you need is a ruler and a cautious sense of self-preservation."

"Why a cautious sense of self-preservation?"

Edward turned on the air to the gun and used the same example for the crew that Joe had used to teach him about the nail gun. He picked up a piece of scrap wood and lightly touched the nail gun to the surface of the shard. The wood blasted out of his hand as a nail punched into it, "The nail gun is extremely pressure sensitive. It cuts down on the force needed to wield it, but if you aren't careful, you could end up punching a hole in your leg or foot." Jake gulped and nodded. He motioned for the camera crew to cut filming and held a hand out for Edward. Edward deactivated the gun again and shook Jake's hand, then apologized and turned back to his work.

"Thank you for your time, Mr. Cullen, we'll be back for more tomorrow. We might also hang around to get more shots of you and the others at work."

Edward had been working for about 4 hours when the entire crew was called to lunch. He shut off his nail gun and set it down, heading for the tent where food had already been prepared by two of the volunteers. The husband and wife team of Eric and Camille had agreed to create lunch each day. They owned a catering company, and every year one of them picked a charity to work on. Camille had a friend who was abused by her husband and wanted to support the shelter systems.

Edward pulled his Henley over his head, and he winced slightly as he felt the familiar pull of sunburn on his shoulders. It was less severe than he had feared, though; he was pretty sure he'd be over it within a couple days. Edward got to the tent with the last group of volunteers and looked around for Jasper. The blond was absent, and Edward wondered where he could be.

Joe and the other skilled workers knew each other quite well, so they sat together at the middle of the long table. Edward sat next to Joe, "Do you know where Jasper is, Joe?"

"He had to run to town for some supplies that just got shipped in, he'll be back in a few minutes," the electrician answered, "I'm Alex, by the way," he held a hand across the table and Edward shook it firmly. Jacob sat down next to Edward and his thigh came to rest conveniently close to Edward's. He hadn't been able to engage Edward in casual conversation over the past 2 hours, though not for lack of trying. Edward had resisted all attempts Jacob made to distract him. The young businessman was not stupid, and he had determined Jacob's intent. He wasn't remotely attracted to Jacob, and thought it best to keep everything professional. Jacob's thigh connected with Edward's and Edward moved his leg away. Edward began shoveling the food into his mouth at an unhealthy rate.

Joe looked over with a quizzical expression and saw how Jacob was eyeing Edward. He noted how Jacob's body shifted as the brunet shifted his leg to connect with Edward's again, and saw how Edward avoided the contact yet again. Joe narrowed his eyes at Jacob, "Are you a volunteer? I don't recognize you…" Jacob shook his head, focusing on the carpenter.

"I'm here doing a documentary on Mr. Cullen's time at the site. We'll release it as a promotion to help people learn about volunteer work, and help them see how easy and fulfilling the experience is. We hope it will help projects like these get support in the future."

"I hope you'll maintain a professional distance when you're on the site." Joe sent a look at Jacob that conveyed exactly what he was talking about, "If you crowd the workers, you could cause accidents." Jacob knew what the older man was getting at and backed off for the moment. Joe turned his attention to Edward.

"So, Edward, everyone is talking about the celebrity already, I know you're a hard worker, but I've yet to hear anything about your personal life, are you seeing anyone?"

Edward wasn't comfortable talking about his personal life in even the vaguest terms, but he was relieved that Jake had stopped trying to put moves on him, and he wanted to keep the positive turn of events from being reversed, "I don't generally discuss my personal life, but I have been seeing someone for a while now. It's rather serious."

Edward got up from the table, his plate now clear. He washed it off and placed it in the drying rack. Doing the same for his fork, he started to go back to the house. He was almost done with two of the insulated walls, and wanted to get another two done before he had to quit for the day. Edward pulled off his shirt and heard some catcalls from the women at the dining table; he shoved the shirt in his back pocket and started to walk back to the building. Edward made it inside and walked toward the next section that needed sheetrock put in. He started to work again, hoping it would be at least a few minutes before the documentary crew came to bother him again.

Only moments after Edward placed the first nail, he heard a gasp behind him. He shut off the machine and turned to find out who had interrupted his work. Jasper was in front of him with an angry look on his face.

"Why aren't you wearing a shirt?" The question was innocent, but Edward felt like Jasper was judging him.

"I didn't have an undershirt, and the Henley was too thick, Joe said I would overheat."

"Edward, if you get sunburned today, you're going to be in pain for the rest of the week. Why didn't you get an undershirt from the…" he trailed off, rubbing his face with one hand, "you should have asked me. I could have given you one of my shirts."

Edward felt his cock twitch at the thought of wearing one of Jasper's shirts, if even for only one day, "I didn't realize. I've been using sun block, but I should have talked to you. Could I get an undershirt now?" Jasper sighed in frustration.

"I took all my clothes to the motel while I was picking up supplies. I didn't want to waste any space. I only have the shirt on my back." Edward looked at the damp undershirt, smudged from the work Jasper had been doing. He licked his lips unconsciously.

"I guess I'll deal," Edward said, shrugging and turning back to pick up the nail gun, "It's just a little burn, I probably won't feel it tomorrow," he lied, knowing that the longer he went without a shirt, the worse it would be. He didn't want Jasper to feel worse than he already did.

Jasper thought for a moment, "Edward, I can't have you getting injured on the site, it might get into the documentary, and that would be bad. I think…" he paused and Edward looked at him in time to see Jasper whip his undershirt off over his head. Edward gulped loudly and stared at the perfect, tanned expanse of chest.

"I'm sorry it's all sweaty and gross, but you need it more than I do." Jasper held out the shirt, looking embarrassed. Edward resisted the urge to bury his nose in the shirt and inhale. He was touched by the gesture and turned on by the result of Jasper's kindness. He slipped the shirt over his head, smelling Jasper all around him, "Tomorrow, if you clothes haven't arrived, you can borrow another of my shirts. I promise all the rest are clean."

Edward sneaked a glance around the room and what parts of the building were visible, no one was in sight.

"Jasper," he said, pulling the shirt down around his waist. The blond looked him in the eye. Edward gathered his courage and stepped up to Jasper, invading the other man's personal space. He snaked his arms around Jasper's waist and pulled the other man close, "Thank you," Edward tilted his head up, offering himself to Jasper. Jasper grew rock hard and he lowered his lips slowly to Edward's, pressing a soft kiss to the younger man's lips.

Edward licked softly at Jasper's lips, gripping the blond's ass in his hands and trying to deepen the kiss. Jasper groaned and pulled away, "God, Edward, we're supposed to be goin' slow, darlin'."

Edward attempted to reach up for another kiss, but Jasper arched away. In the process, Jasper's crotch dragged against Edward's and his belt buckle dug into Edward's stomach. Edward growled in frustration. Hours of seeing Jasper in various states of dishevelment and grunge had left Edward completely keyed up.

"The other volunteers will be comin' back in a minute," Jasper's voice soothed Edward as the blond unhooked Edward's hands from around his waist, "we'll have to continue this on our date tonight." Edward wasn't entirely sure he'd make it to the date without jumping Jasper again, but he knew that the older man was right. They would soon have an audience, and Edward was positive he didn't want to come out to the world in such an uncontrolled setting, away from the support of his family.

Jasper turned to leave and Edward sucked in a breath at the reddish marks his fingers had made on the other man's lower back. He groaned throatily and Jasper threw a cocky smirk over his shoulder, "Later, darlin'." He disappeared around the corner and Edward immediately pulled Jasper's undershirt up to his nose and inhaled the potent aroma of Jasper's sweat. Edward was generally a neat freak, but the smell of Jasper's clean body combined with the scent of honest work in the outdoors was intoxicating. Edward made a mental note to steer completely clear of Jasper until the end of the workday. Just the knowledge that Jasper was shirtless because of Edward made the idea of any other encounter that much more erotic. Perhaps he had made the right wardrobe decision after all.

Edward was relieved when Jake decided that there was no other viable angle to shoot film of a person nailing up dry wall. The documentary crew spent another while at the rest tent, getting snippets of commentary from each of the volunteers. Everyone had something to say about the celebrity on their workforce. Some of the women gushed about Edward Cullen being on the site, others commented that he was quiet, but unfailingly polite. The men mostly complimented the fact that Edward seemed to be doing well. It was only his first day doing manual labor, but many of them had noticed that Edward worked as hard as he could. They were also impressed that he never complained, even as the day wore on and he developed sunburn. A few of the men recounted their wardrobe failings when they'd first started as volunteers.

Joe was the kindest of the crew when it came to Edward. He was concerned when he'd heard a celebrity would be 'helping.' Joe had been around the block more than a few times, and every time he'd had the unfortunate privilege to work with a famous person, they invariably turned out to be incompetent, insufferable, or both. Edward was both competent and humble. He did the work well, and Joe hadn't felt the need to check on the young man more than any other volunteer. Joe also noticed the fact that Edward was wearing Jasper's undershirt. He'd seen heated looks pass between the two men all day, though neither was aware that the other was observing them. Joe kept this to himself.

He remembered his wife, Mary, who had died two years before. He wished the men well, especially given the small-mindedness of many people. Jake seemed to get bored with the praise Edward was receiving, which bothered Joe. He saw that Jake was slightly obsessive about Edward, but the dark-haired documentarian also seemed to be after something. Joe worried about Edward being hung out to dry because he didn't return Jake's attentions.

Edward took two more breaks over the course of the afternoon. As the sun sank, the temperature rose slightly, but the intensity of sunlight diminished over the course of the afternoon, so Edward felt much more comfortable working. Once the sun had sunk behind a partly completed wall, Edward was in shade while he worked. The first time Edward took a break, Jake was waiting at the tent, but the second time the documentary crew was thankfully absent. Edward completed his final wall of the day at 4:30 and searched for Joe to see if he could help anywhere else. Joe sent him to help pack away the supplies from Jasper's truck, knowing that it would have to be done before the day ended. 4 other volunteers worked with Edward, piling the lumber, sheetrock, insulation, and other supplies in the appropriate piles. They finished with a few minutes to spare and started covering over the piles. When Edward finished his work, his back and arms were sore and felt like overcooked pasta.

Edward had assumed that he would ride to the hotel with the documentary crew, but they were nowhere to be found. He wandered around the parking lot for a moment, before deciding that Jasper might take him to the hotel so that he could change for their date. Edward remembered that he had no fresh clothes to wear. Perhaps he could borrow some of Jasper's.

Edward peeled off the loaned undershirt and replaced it with his Henley. The temperature was cooling down, and he no longer needed to avoid heat. He hopped into Jasper's truck and set the shirt in the backseat. Then Edward rested his eyes for a moment.

Jasper

Jasper was a little late finishing his work. He normally didn't allow anyone to work past 5, since the days were long already, but he and the roof crew were halfway done installing a beam when his alarm indicated quitting time. Jasper asked everyone to stay for just a few minutes and finish the beam so they wouldn't have to restart its installation tomorrow.

They finished at 5:06 and Jasper thanked everyone for their extra time. He donned his flannel shirt and buttoned it up most of the way. The site was empty but for the roof crew and Joe. The old man was one of Jasper's favorite sub-contractors. His work was exemplary, and he was easygoing and tough as nails. Joe asked if Jasper was interested in catching some dinner with the other sub-contractors. Jasper declined as politely as possible, thinking about his planned date with Edward. He'd been seeing Edward work with his gentle hands all day. The thought of the shy businessman fitting easily into a construction site made Jasper's estimation of the younger man rise to unexpected heights. He'd regretted forcing Edward out of his comfort zone so completely, but it seemed that the redhead was resilient and stubborn. Joe had casually mentioned Edward's attention to detail and independent competence. Jasper had fairly glowed when he heard the compliment. Joe was not given to praise, and had never warmed to a volunteer so quickly in Jasper's memory.

Joe gave Jasper an appraising look when the blond refused the dinner invitation; it was a tradition for the professionals on Jasper's crews to eat out after each day's work. Joe knew Edward had something to do with Jasper's refusal, "He's a good boy, Jasper; you treat him right." The old man turned and walked toward his truck, whistling cheerily. Jasper stared after him, suddenly worried that he might have been too obvious. What if he outed Edward? What would the younger man do?

Jasper looked around, realizing that Edward was not on the site anymore. A small seed of fear uncurled in his stomach, had someone spoken to Edward? Did he know that people saw the way Jasper was drawn to him all day? Had he been caught by the documentary crew?

Jasper was reminded of the morning he had woken up and Edward had disappeared from his bed. He felt the same sensation of horror at himself as he had that day. He made sure that Edward was not anywhere around before pulling out his phone and dialing Edward's cell. He'd programmed the number into his phone when he'd found the paper on his driver's seat.

"You've reached Edward Cullen; I'm not available to take your call. Please leave your name and number and I'll call you back." Jasper felt the fear expand. Edward had turned off his cell phone. He had left with someone else. Jasper had fucked up again. He clenched his fist, silently berating himself for the stupid stunt he'd pulled.

When Jasper found out that Edward wouldn't face him in Seattle, he'd checked on the project Edward was working on. It wasn't hard to find out where Edward would be going to fulfill his end of the bargain, and Jasper happened to be providing the crew.

Jasper was happy to find that it was one of his company's contracts. He'd worked hard to win over Carlisle Cullen, but Whitlock Construction was now one of the main contractors that worked with Cullen Enterprises. Jasper had offered the site manager, a man from New England, the chance to work a job in Massachusetts. The man had been grateful for the shift, and Jasper had set aside time from his schedule to see to Texas personally. He generally did at least one such project a year, just to have a chance to get back to the part of his business he truly loved. He'd already overseen one project, but he wanted to confront Edward. Now it had backfired. There was no other site manager, and Jasper had completely fucked up any chance he had with the other man.

Jasper sighed heavily and stalked over to his truck, yanking the driver's door open roughly. His anger melted away when he saw Edward asleep in his truck. The younger man had slumped over, his neck was twisted at an angle that would undoubtedly be stiff and painful when he awoke, but Jasper felt his heart swell. Edward hadn't abandoned him, nothing was wrong. He was tempted to wake the redhead, but Edward looked so peaceful and sweet while sleeping that Jasper couldn't bring himself to disturb the younger man.

Jasper knew that Edward was staying in the same hotel. He'd checked. He wanted to stroke Edward's hair, but knew that he would likely wake the other man. Jasper started the truck and pulled out of the lot. He locked the gate behind him and hopped back in the truck, heading for the highway. He had never felt so good about a day's work. Edward was with him, by choice. Edward had not caused problems or been petty, he was strong. Edward confronted his shyness and dazzled practically everyone he met. Jasper was no exception.

They reached the hotel and Jasper hopped out, going to the office and finding out that Edward's reservation was already paid for. He got the key to Edward's room, which coincidentally happened to be in close proximity to Jasper's, and drove the truck to a nearby parking space.

Jasper got out the key, and then moved to Edward's side of the truck. He opened the door and touched Edward on the shoulder. The redhead didn't respond. Jasper stroked Edward's hair for a moment before waking the younger man, "Edward, we're at your hotel."

Edward yawned widely as he came slowly awake, "Jasper? Is it time for our date? I think I need to borrow some of your clothes." Jasper chuckled.

"I think you'd fall asleep in your plate if we went out now, Edward, I'm going to get you into bed." Edward grinned and launched himself at Jasper.

"If you say so," he latched onto the taller man and nuzzled his neck before starting to plant wet, open mouthed kisses all along Jasper's collarbone. Edward started unbuttoning Jasper's shirt, exploring the skin he uncovered with each subsequent button. Jasper groaned at the erotic movement of Edward's sinful lips on his skin. He tried desperately to stop himself from giving in to the sensations Edward was evoking.

"That's not what I meant, Edward, I don't want to ruin this by going too fast, but you're too tired to move slowly without conking out on me." He smiled softly and pressed a kiss to Edward's hair. He inhaled deeply, then pulled away and restrained Edward from following. Edward pouted, but Jasper was firm. Edward muttered darkly things about Jasper's teasing, and the blond laughed.

Jasper led Edward to the appropriate door and unlocked it before handing Edward the key, "I'd offer to tuck you in, but I think it would be too dangerous," Jasper tried to lighten the mood. Edward's eyes glittered.

"Are you afraid of me, Jasper?" Edward's voice was low and seductive, Jasper gulped.

"Edward, please understand that I'm trying very hard to control myself, and you aren't making it easy." Jasper backed off, locking his hands behind his back, "I want to do right by you. Please let me do this right, I don't want to scare you off."

Edward grinned, "You won't scare me off, Jasper. I'm going to go into my room now, and I'm going to think of you while I jack off. I'm going to scream your name when I cum. I want you to think of me, too." Jasper's eyes widened and he grabbed onto a pillar to keep from doing anything Edward might regret in the morning.

"Think of me, Jasper." Edward said, walking into his room and closing the door behind him.

Jasper slumped against the pillar, "Fuck me…" he breathed, trying to recoup some semblance of control.

A/N I'm a day early! Aren't I fabulous? Perhaps I will do an outtake along with the next chapter, since I'm about to break 100 reviews. I'm thinking either a chapter dealing with Emmett's trip east (which would have no lemons, unfortunately) or an alternate version of the morning after… (which might have lemons, or might not, depending on what sort of mood I'm in…) Next chapter will have a date of sorts, though it won't happen like you're thinking. Edward never gets easy breaks.

Let me know which outtake you would prefer, and watch for it in another story thread. I don't want to break the continuity of this with something everyone might not read.