A/N: If you have not seen it yet, I have post a quick Christmas one shot for Twilight. It is called A Very Merry Twilight Christmas. It is my Christmas present to you. I wanted to say Happy Christmas and Merry New Year to everyone. Back to Moving On, thank you everyone for the reviews and the reads. Well the vampire in the woods is a stranger and I will reveal what happens later on. I promise. You will also learn of the rest of Alice's vision later along with the vision she had about the stranger, but I will say that Alice needs love too. For now though, let's get back to Jasper and Bella. As you know, they have realized that they have feelings for each other; it is time to see what happens when they see each other again. Enjoy and let me know what you think when you get the chance.

Chapter 17 – Together Again

Bella awoke the next morning and she felt revived. She was ready for Jasper to be back. She was anxious without him and knew it was because she loved it. It was hard for her to admit to loving him because of who his ex-wife and brother were, but it did not diminish the feelings she had for him. She was sure that he didn't feel the same, but she hoped that with time that he would love her also. She knew he cared about her and for now that was enough.

She got out of bed after breathing in his scent a few minutes longer and made her way to the attached bathroom to take a shower and get ready for his return. She did not allow herself to think about if he needed to be gone longer than the one day; she wouldn't allow herself to think about that. He had to come home today.

She finished getting ready and then made her way downstairs to the kitchen. Esme was already there, cooking her some breakfast and had a smile on her face. Bella smiled back and grabbed the orange juice out of the fridge to pour a glass. She sat down at the breakfast bar and watched Esme make pancakes, "It smells great!" She was hungry and she was giddy, anxious for a southern vampire's return.

"Thank you. There is a couple already made if you want to get started," Esme looked up with a knowing smile. She could tell that Bella had come to some conclusions since she left the group and went to bed the night before. She seemed more at ease and less agitated. She was still fidgety, but she was sure that was because she was ready for Jasper to be home. No one in the house was blind to the feelings the two held for each other and everyone supported both of them. She knew that it was hard for Edward, but he knew that Jasper and Bella needed each other and for that reason, he knew they belonged together. They had been thrown together by fate and learned to depend on each other through their trials. They deserved happiness.

Bella grabbed a plate and moved some of the pancakes to it so that she could eat. She wondered when Jasper would be home. She looked at the clock and groaned; it was only 9:14 am. He had already been gone for over 24 hours and it would probably be another few hours before he got home. She told herself that she could be patient and she could wait, but that didn't mean that she wasn't ready now. She stopped, how was she going to act when he walked through the door? He didn't feel the same about her, but there was something on his side as well as hers. Was she going to attack him because she missed him? No, she decided to just act like she had been and be the buddy and friend. She could do that as long as she could see him. She concentrated on eating and tried not to look at the time every couple of minutes.

Jasper was flooring it. He was ready to be home and to see Bella. He had already been gone longer than 24 hours and he just wanted to be where ever she was. He was breaking the speed limit, but he didn't care. He knew that he would not be stopped. He could see the police before they could catch him. He would be home in another couple of hours. He couldn't wait.

Jasper smirked to himself. He wasn't sure what Bella's feelings for him were, but he knew without a shadow of a doubt that he loved her and she had healed his hurts. She was his personal miracle worker and he knew that he could never leave her. Alice had left and it was time to move on. Bella was the only person he saw himself doing that with. He hoped that if she didn't feel the same, that one day she would. He knew she cared, but beyond that, he wasn't sure. He knew one thing though, as soon as he walked into the house he would search her out and pull her into his arms. He had been too long without her.

Jasper pushed his truck harder and faster than he had ever done before. He knew she was capable of it and didn't worry about it imploding like he was afraid Bella's would. He just wanted to get to his destination and to see his girl.

When Jasper got to the outskirts of Forks, he slowed the truck down and pulled into the parking lot of a flower shop. He bought Bella a bouquet of red roses and quickly got back into his truck so that he could get back home to her.

Jasper didn't bother with pulling into the garage. He parked as close to the front door as possible and it only took seconds for him to enter the house after he turned off the engine. He ran into the living room and only found Esme, Carlisle, Emmett, and Rose. He gave them a questioning look and he noticed the smiles all four of them wore, "What?" He felt nothing but happiness coming off of his family in waves. Happiness and love for him.

Carlisle noticed the flowers in Jasper's hand and spoke first, "It is good to see you excited and smiling again son."

Esme walked up to him and gave him a hug, "I know who you were rushing to see. She is up in your room working on some homework. She was just as eager as you and needed a distraction."

Jasper didn't stop to hear from the other two in the room; he took off up the stairs to find the person he was so enthusiastic to see. He was at his bedroom door in less than a minute and as he looked at the closed door, he was suddenly very nervous. He felt like a school boy telling his crush that he liked her. Well other than the school boy part, he was. He knocked on the door softly and heard her tell him that it was open. Jasper smiled, he was sure that she as expecting someone else to be on the other side of the door. He twisted the handle and opened the door with a smirk firmly in place, "Why thank you darlin' for letting me come into my own room."

Bella looked up at the sound of a southern drawl. He was there. It was Jasper and he was back home. She forgot about her earlier talk to herself and her plan; she jumped off the bed and ran to him, hurling herself into his arms. "Your back!" She said excitedly.

"I am back and I missed you too," Jasper said as he handed her the roses he bought for her. He then looked into her eyes and tried to gage her emotions. He felt her pleasure at seeing him. The joy at hearing his voice, but there was more. He felt love. He looked into her eyes and could see the love that he felt for her shining back at him. He cupped her face and used his thumbs to brush over her cheeks before he leaned in and softly kissed her lips.

Bella saw him pull back and stare at her. She felt so relieved to be in his arms again. It was pure ecstasy and she did not want to be anywhere else in the world at that moment. She looked deep into his eyes and
thought she might have seen an emotion that mirrored her. She prayed that she did and when he cupped her face and kissed her, she knew she had. Her breath hitched and she leaned in to elongate the kiss when he started to end it. She wasn't done yet and she guessed he wasn't either when he kissed her back a little more passionately. It was still a fairly chaste kiss, but this was new territory for them.

Jasper pulled back and leaned his forehead against hers. She was out of breath and he felt like he was too. It was beautiful and perfect and he wouldn't have changed anything about it.

"Don't ever leave me again," Bella said smiling up at him.

Jasper chuckled, "Not to worry. I am where I belong." He pulled her further into his arms and gave her another kiss.