Thank you to the beautiful Hadley Hemingway for being so kind as to offer us her amazing Beta skills and the lovely Jan Breesmom for pre-reading for us :)

EPOV

I follow him to his office and am impressed with what I see. I knew he was an architect, but never imagined he did fancy buildings. I thought he'd just be doing people's houses, but that's not the case. On his walls hang portraits of buildings and their matching designs paired together, side by side.

"You did these?" I already know the answer, but figure I'll ask just to break the silence.

Jasper's standing at his small bar, pouring two shots of bourbon. When he's done, he turns and takes in the walls. "Sure did."

"Man, these look awesome," I say, knowing the word is inadequate, but not being able to come up with a better one.

His cheeks tinge pink, and he offers his thanks before handing my shot over. I lift it in the air. "To Nashville," I say.

"To Nashville," he repeats, and we both down our shots. It burns going down, but I hold my glass out for another.

He chuckles and pours us a double this time. We sit and sip on those while getting to know each other better. I find out that he was raised in New York and had always planned to build there, until he met a spiky-haired nymph who bewitched him into moving to Nashville. He's been here ever since.

"Tell me 'bout this buildin'," I say, pointing to one of his designs.

He starts talking, and the twinkle in his eyes grows with every word he speaks. His hands are flying around like crazy, as he describes in detail all the decisions that went into making this building come alive. And I realize, that for him, it is.

"Which one's ya favorite?"

He looks them over for a second. "It's hard to choose because I love several of them for different reasons, but probably this one." He points to a picture of a huge building that's beautiful. It's white with large columns in the front, lots of windows, and several levels.

"Why's that one ya favorite?"

"It was the first project I worked on as head architect. It's a library. I needed to make sure it had plenty of light and still felt warm and inviting. It's something I'm very proud of."

Seeing him talk about his work with pride in his eyes is amazing. It's a feeling I'd love to have.

"How'd ya know you wanted to do this?" I wave my hands at all the pictures.

"I've loved drawing since I can remember. Living in New York with all of these grand buildings, I couldn't help but be drawn to them. One day I was watching this skyscraper going up, and I just knew that someday, I wanted to be the person who designed buildings like that."

"That's awesome, man. I always loved drawing too."

"Oh, yeah? What kind of stuff do you draw?"

"I just play around. I can do almost anythin', but I like doin' covered bridges, old barns, and stuff like that around my hometown."

"Have you ever thought about doing something professionally with your art, like what I do or something else?"

"Naw. I barely had time to get my GED. I quit school to take care of my brother when my parents got arrested, so college and a big career ain't really an option."

"You're still young. It's not too late to start college now."

I used to look forward to going to college when I was younger. Then, with the way my parents were, and knowing someone needed to take care of Emmett, I gave up those dreams. It's been worth it making sure my brother is taken care of and happy, but sometimes I wish I would've had normal parents because of the opportunities I missed.

Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I notice Jasper's talking again. "I'd love to see some of your drawings."

"Okay. Sure." I figure he's just being polite.

"I'm serious. How about you bring some of them over tomorrow? I should be around all day."

"Uh, alright. You sure ya don't have nothin' better to do? I know you must be busy."

"Nah, man. Alice will probably just have me helping her clean or something. Plus, I really want to see what you can do."

"Okay. I have to work at four, but I can bring them over sometime before, if you're sure that's alright."

"Sounds great. We'll have a beer, and I'll take a look. As long as you're here, Alice won't nag me about my 'honey-do' list."

We both laugh, and I decide to change the subject.

"So, do you miss New York?"

"Do you miss Georgia?" He smirks. "I mean, yeah, I miss it sometimes, but being here with Alice and Rose is great. We visit New York at least once a year, and now I find I'm usually ready to get back here. I guess the hustle and bustle of it just isn't for me anymore. Plus, Nashville needed a good architect."

"I hear ya. I miss Georgia a bit, but being here with Bella is really good."

"Good. Glad to hear it." He picks up his glass for another toast.

"To our women. We're some lucky bastards." I can't agree with that more. We both down the rest of our liquor. We talk for just a little longer before we head back out to join Alice and Bella.

The rest of the night is fun, and I can see that I'm gonna have a good friend in Jasper.

~~~SOTW~~~

After heading back to our house, I make sure Em gets to bed while Bella goes to shower.

I make it just in time to see her coming out of the steamy bathroom naked. She looks at me and grins, as she starts slowly rubbing lotion from her ankle to her creamy thigh. She's tempting me, and she knows it. When she bends over to start her other leg, I snap.

"Alright. That's it." I can't resist so I grab her and toss her on the bed.

Her giggles are loud, and I'm glad we're on the other end of the house from Emmett. "Hey, I wasn't finished."

I jump on her. "Such a tease, Miss Swan. I'mma make you pay for that."

"Oh, yeah?" She looks up at me. "What'cha gonna do 'bout it, big boy?"

"Oh, you really shouldn't a asked that." I kiss her and roll us so she's on top, then give her ass a firm smack. She pulls away from my lips and looks at me with wide eyes.

"Did you just smack my ass?"

"I surely did." I pop it one more time, 'fore rolling us back over to pin her beneath me. Her eyes are bright, and I know she ain't mad. I kiss her again and proceed to show her exactly what happens when she teases me.

We're spent and happy, lying here naked and sweaty, when she turns to me. "I need to tease you more often if that's my punishment."

I give her a cocky smirk and reach out to pull her closer. She plays with the few sparse hairs on my chest, while I run my free hand through her hair. "So did you have fun tonight? How'd you like Jasper?" she asks.

"Yeah, it was fun. Jasper's a cool guy." I'm getting sleepy, but Bella seems to be in a talkative mood.

"So what'd y'a'll talk 'bout in his office?"

"Not much really. He told me a little 'bout his work."

"Hopefully, he didn't bore ya. He can get crazy talkin' about his buildin's and stuff."

"Nah. I actually enjoyed it. It seems like a great job to have."

"You like architecture?"

"Yeah. I mean I've always liked drawin' and I love seein' things come to life. If I'd hadda chance, it mighta been the type of career I'd went for."

Her hand stops and she raises her head to look at me. "It's not too late, baby. You can still go to college."

I really don't want to talk about this, but knowing Bella, she won't let it go easy. I gently coax her to lie back down and go back to stroking her hair. "It's not that easy. I have to work, and I have Emmett to take care of. Not to mention, college is expensive."

She raises her head again, and this time, she has fire in her eyes. "When're you gonna realize you're not alone anymore, dammit? You don't have to do everything on your own. I love Em and am happy to watch him anytime, and if I can't, Alice'll do it. Plus, I know you don't like talkin' about it, but you really don't have to work."

I start to argue, and she puts her fingers on my lips. "I know it's somethin' you feel you need to do, so maybe you could cut your hours down. And, baby, I love you. I would be honored if you'd let me help ya pay for college."

I start to argue again, but she's clearly not gonna let me talk right now. "Now listen, if our roles were reversed, would you even hesitate to offer any of this to me? Or would you insist I let you help?"

She does have me there. Not that I can tell her that, since she starts talking again right away. "I know you feel like it's not right or you're takin' advantage or somethin', but I love you, Edward. We're in this forever, or at least I am. Anything I do to help you, is really helpin' us…"

This time, I shut her up by kissing her. "Hush, girl. You're on a roll, huh? I'll think about it, okay?"

She actually rolls her eyes at me. "I'm not gonna give up, Edward Cullen. I ain't that easy."

Then she looks at me and sees the grin on my face at her choice of words. She thumps my chest. "Shut up. I ain't that easy 'bout some stuff. I can't help it if your magic cock causes me to lose my mind and restraint."

"Magic? I like that. Maybe I should call him Copperfield."

She sits up and moves the covers, then grabs me and starts stroking. "Copperfield? Mmmm, that might work. Want me to teach him a trick?" She moves and takes me in her mouth.

I think maybe she's the magic one.

So it would seem Edward has some decisions to make. He deserves to finally have the chance to have opportunities. Now, will he take them… Thank you all so much for sticking with us! See you next time!