Thanks to shouvley and bigblueboat for their beta work. Bigger thanks to SunflowerFran, who made this better!
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THE RENDEZVOUS GAME
CHAPTER 3
On a Friday, three weeks after the "faux date" with Edward, Bella was sitting in the office space she had in the living room. She leaned back in her chair and sighed deeply before taking a big gulp of ice water. After staring at her computer screen for several minutes, she looked at the clock.
Twelve-thirty.
She had the rest of the day ahead of her, and she felt free to do anything she pleased. She put together some ingredients to cook some rice, and while she waited for the water to boil, she grabbed the phone. She wanted—no, needed—to tell somebody, so she pushed the buttons to call the first person that came to her mind. It only rang once before he picked up.
"Hey." Bella heard at the other end.
"Hey," she responded.
"Is everything okay?"
"Yes, better than okay, actually."
Bella listened to his breathing for a second as he waited. All of a sudden, she felt nervous to tell him her news.
"So, are you—" he started.
"I finished it," she blurted out, interrupting him.
"Really, you're done? That's fantastic, Bella. Congratulations!"
"Edward, you're the first person to know."
"I'm very happy to hear that, and I can't wait to read what you've got," he said. He tried to sound genuinely excited for her even though he was upset that their work relationship was about to end. She'd been on a roll lately, and he had dreaded getting this news since they'd spent over two weeks discussing the ending of her novel together with Emmett.
This was the day.
"And you will, very soon."
"Then I guess we're almost done working together."
"Yes..."
He shook his head, noticing her silence.
Why did he have to say that … to remind her? How stupid. Not wanting to make it a sad moment, he tried to find a silver lining.
"But I'll see you soon, right? Emmett will want to celebrate."
· - ·
Edward was right. Emmett organized a dinner party at his house on Sunday. He didn't want to invite a lot of people because he knew Bella didn't enjoy huge groups so he wanted to keep it intimate. However, without realizing it, a few friends turned into a few more, and in the end there were over three times the amount of people intended.
Rosalie suggested a quick, barbecue dinner at home, and then drinks at their favorite Irish pub downtown, therefore eliminating a lot of cleanup after the party.
Since she arrived, Edward couldn't keep his eyes off Bella. She always looked pretty to him, but that day especially. She was glowing, and looked radiant in her success; absolutely beautiful. She had yet to see her first novel published, but at least the hard work was all done.
Every time he looked at her, his stomach did somersaults.
Edward remembered how, after catching sight of her at the wedding, his body finally had a reaction to someone since he parted ways with Bella years before. He felt stupid thinking he could get away from her. Even though she seemed like a completely different person—she was after all a woman now—he still felt attracted to her.
And of course, the few times he looked away that night, he noticed most of the other men and even a few women equally enraptured by the star of the party, Jasper being one of them. Edward paid close attention to their interactions from afar and realized that he might have been mistaken about the assumptions he'd made when he met him weeks ago. Seeing Bella so close to him and watching how she seemed completely at ease, making physical contact and sharing sweet glances, Edward felt a tinge of jealousy. He'd never been the overly possessive type, and although he liked to keep his girls close, he wouldn't put them on a leash. But Bella wasn't his girl, was she? Jasper didn't seem to need a leash; she stayed next to him.
On the other side of the room, Bella was freaking out inside.
It had been Emmett's idea to celebrate at his house, and he organized everything, including the guest list. Right now, she wanted to blame him for inviting so many people to what she would have wanted to be a smaller gathering. Luckily, Jasper was right there to save her from that sleazy guy James, whose girlfriend was Rosalie's friend, Victoria. There was also Mike, Emmett's golfing partner, who had many contacts in magazines and publishing houses, and who she had gone out with once. He'd managed to seduce her enough to get her naked on his couch, but after thirty minutes of oral, he was unable to get her off, and she cut it short as politely as she could. He hadn't been too mad and invited her on a second date, but she was already seeing Jasper, so she got away with it.
After a trip to the upstairs bathroom, she wanted a few moments to herself. Bella went into the guest room and out onto the balcony. She welcomed the fresh air and silence... until she heard the toilet and the door to the guest room opening a couple of minutes after. Bella didn't know who to expect, but she hoped it'd be someone she hadn't been able to talk to all night, and it was. She turned around and found Edward standing by the door to the balcony.
"May I join you?" he asked tentatively. He didn't want to disturb her, but he was also anxious to share a peaceful moment.
"Sure."
He moved to stand beside her, leaning his forearms on the railing. The night was calm and warm, with only a gentle breeze blowing, and the sky was clear. You could actually see a few stars here and there without the lights of the neighborhood interfering.
"Edward." She looked at his profile then and was silent for a brief moment, admiring his handsome features. "I wanted to thank you for all you've done. I feel like this wouldn't have been possible without your help."
He gazed up at the stars and wondered what would it take to deserve the woman next to him. "I haven't done anything Bella. It was all you," he said.
"Yes, you have," she insisted. "My work had been stagnant for a while, you know. Then the wedding happened ... And it hasn't been the same since. I think it's because of what you bring out in me. And you've also had input in the actual words I wrote, helping me improve, so thank you."
Hearing her say that with such conviction made him turn to look at her. What he saw in her eyes was the sincerity her words were trying to convey. And he knew then that she believed them, but he wasn't sure she was right.
Edward moved closer and hugged her; feeling her tense for a second in surprise before relaxing completely in his arms and returning his embrace.
"Bella, you're special," he said with his lips at the top of her head, as he kissed her there. "I loved working with you, and I'm glad you're satisfied with my help. You're most certainly welcome."
They remained like that for a few minutes without it becoming awkward or uncomfortable. Bella had avoided that kind of contact with him for so long that now she almost craved it. And he was willing to give it to her for as long as she wanted. Edward just rubbed her back soothingly, over and over, while she buried her nose in his shirt, softly inhaling his masculine scent.
She couldn't get enough of it.
Their bubble was broken abruptly when a throat cleared by the balcony door. Her heart almost jumped out of her chest when she saw Jasper standing there, his hands in his pockets and a calculated neutral expression on his face. Edward turned serene but took a step back.
"We're ready to leave for the bar," Jasper said, looking at Bella. "Some people want to say goodbye."
She nodded and walked past him into the room. Jasper went after her, but not before fixing Edward with a stare. And Jasper wasn't even sure he meant it as a hands off my girl stare, but he loved Bella and cared for what was best for her, so it definitely was a warning not to hurt her.
· - ·
Jasper woke up feeling as if his head would explode.
Without opening his eyes, he rolled to the center of the bed, where he could feel Bella sleeping beside him. He wrapped his arm around her front, effectively spooning her, and sighed deeply. It had been a hot week, and they slept wearing little-to-no clothes. Jasper was too aware of Bella's almost-nude body pressed against him in the still-dark room. He ran his hand over the silky smooth skin of her stomach, up to her breast and caressed it gently, eliciting a low hum from her. Jasper had been craving some female contact for a while. With Bella being so busy all the time and him preparing his next exhibition, there hadn't been a lot of sexing up.
He believed that was the reason he'd almost crossed a line with Alice earlier that week when she'd come by his studio to say goodbye before going back to the east coast.
Sitting on the floor under the window, they belatedly celebrated her birthday with her blowing out a candle haphazardly stuck in a cupcake, which he fed her with his fingers. He then tasted the chocolate directly from her lips, and their kiss quickly escalated. She was too tempting for him to be able to resist. For a while, she was content with him kissing down her neck to her collarbone, up again to her mouth. But then, the strap of her low, V-neck top fell down her shoulder, partially exposing her breast. Breathing heavily, they looked into each other's eyes before Jasper kissed her again; brushing his hands up and down her arms. He didn't waste any time moving her top aside with his nose and licking her hardened nipple. He kissed and sucked gently before blowing lightly on it, which made Alice shiver. She loved the feeling, but realized what they were doing wasn't right. She wasn't a home-wrecker. So she placed her little hands on his cheeks and brought his mouth back to hers for one last kiss.
"I have to go," she whispered against his lips.
Jasper understood the meaning behind those words. It would be a long time before they saw each other again, and going too far wouldn't be beneficial for either of them. With a sad sigh, he brought her strap back up over her shoulder and softly brushed her hair away from her face before he helped her stand.
When he saw her eyes shining with emotion, he hugged her. "I'll miss you," he said into her ear. She couldn't speak through the lump in her throat, so she simply nodded. Of course she'd miss him just as much.
Bella moved her body closer to Jasper's front until they were fully in contact and brought him out of his thoughts. He felt guilty thinking about another woman, but his head was still hazy from the alcohol, and his hormones were taking over.
Jasper squeezed Bella's breast a little more firmly and brushed his thumb across her pert nipple a few times, to which she responded with little sounds in her slumber. He kissed the back of her neck and shoulder while drawing his hand down to the edge of her panties as he slowly brushed his fingers along the band—two, three times—before she pushed her butt against his erection. He hissed lowly and dipped his fingers to touch her sensitive clit and to gather some of her moisture, then back up to rub her gently. She seemed to become aware of his ministrations after a few seconds.
Bella let out a low moan when she almost came to her senses. She didn't feel the tiredness of her muscles or the headache from her impending hangover, only the sweet pleasure of fingers that weren't her own, a warm body behind her and hot breath against her neck. She still felt as if she was dreaming. It had been so many days since she felt a man's touch. And because it was her dream, she imagined they were Edward's fingers probing and entering her when she brought her leg back and over his.
Jasper rubbed his erection with his other hand inside his boxers, but still stayed as close to her as he could, enjoying her lazily undulating body against him. It wasn't long before he felt the delicious tightening and the waves of his orgasm hit him. He stopped moving his hand for a second to stretch out with a groan of satisfaction. However, Bella wasn't there yet, so she brought her hand down his arm and over his hand between her legs to help him along and moved her hips encouragingly. After he resumed his actions, not a full minute passed before she gasped and came undone.
Jasper kissed her shoulder once more and reluctantly got up to wash up in the bathroom and change his underwear. Yawning, he returned to the bed and glanced at the clock on the bedside table, realizing he had a few more hours to sleep before he had to get up for the day.
When Jasper returned to bed, Bella was once again fast asleep. He climbed in, turning his body to the side, looking over at her once again, missing the connection they once had. He wondered what had changed between them, and how they might be able to return to what they once were.
He felt extremely happy and proud of Bella's accomplishment. She had allowed him to read some of her novel beforehand and he already knew it would be a success. He spent the whole night by her side, being supportive; however, he could admit to himself that he had acted a bit possessive. It never escaped him the lustful looks she drew without realizing, especially Edward's, who Jasper had been wary of for a long time. Last night he realized how much that man wanted his woman, even if he had the decency to keep the distance. Jasper saw how even when Edward chatted with another girl at the bar, he still kept an eye on Bella, as if he was waiting for the moment when she'd be alone to approach her.
It wasn't as if Jasper didn't want them talking. Hell, they'd been working together for some time. However, he was also aware of Bella's side of their history, and he wanted to prevent another heartbreak for her. For all he knew, Edward could make history repeat itself, seduce his girl into falling in love, then leaving overnight for another country on the other side of the ocean.
Now, with Alice thousands of miles away and Bella not having to write a novel, Jasper decided to work on his relationship with the latter and try to make it get back to how it was.
Little did he know that somewhere across the city, another man had already challenged himself to do the same thing.