Fandom for Preemies - Mistress of My Heart - to be continued...

I have just posted my contribution to the Fandom for Preemies compilation - Mistress of my Heart.  This one-shot is now being extended into a full length fic after Christmas....

Summary: No one would accuse Edward of having a submissive personality but when he believes that Bella is leaving him for his own good he’s determined to do anything to keep Bella in his life…even if it means relinquishing complete control to the love of his life.

I have 3 banners for the story and can't choose between them so all 3 are below:

Christine from Christag_Banners (bannermaker extraordinaire and all round cool chick) made the first two and I was mucking around one night with a free program and made the final one after I had written the story. 

A little teaser:

I had never thought of myself as a weak man or possessing any kind of a submissive nature. Quite the opposite, in fact. My job was in senior management at a large corporation – Financial Controller of Cullen Enterprises, and I directly managed a team of fifty accountants, planners and clerical staff. I was used to making decisions and giving orders all day, every day and, on most occasions, I also chaired the Board Meetings as the current Chairman since Carlisle Cullen himself, had recently moved into semi-retirement in order to spend time with his wife, Esme.


However, I loved it whenever Bella took the initiative in the bedroom, her every action showing me how much she loved and desired me. These times had been so freeing for me, giving the power to someone else, not having to be the one always responsible for making decisions, to be able to simply feel and respond.

My future happiness was dependent on this night and right at this moment my gut was churning and I could feel myself starting to even sweat a little at the thought that this last ditch attempt with Bella might fail.

Not to be too melodramatic, but the rest of my life would be determined by what would take place in this room over the next few hours. I was nervous about what I hoped would happen. But I was equally determined to move forward with my plan for the evening. I had never done anything like this, but then again, I had never faced anything like the last six months before and I was prepared to do anything it took.

To be quite honest, I think Bella is planning on leaving me. She has been more distant with me than ever before and keeps telling me that I deserve someone who is not as broken as she is. She is trying to do the right thing by me, even though I constantly tell her that the right thing for me is to be with her, in whatever capacity she wants. She hasn’t agreed with me for months.

My plan to relinquish complete control to Bella in the bedroom is my last ditch effort to save our relationship.

To read more, click here.

Enjoy

Suz

Teaser - Chapter 13 of Scent of a Woman

Yes, it's true.  You're not seeing things...Chapter 13 has finally been stitched up and sent off to my beta in the early hours of this morning.  I have no idea why I had so much trouble finalising this chapter...maybe it was my preoccupation worrying about the number 13 lol! I have been busy with some contests and a contribution to the Preemie Compilation and 2 chapters of Menage and I hurt my arm and couldn't type...but never fear I have already got a fair bit (okay a little bit) of Chapter 14 written.

Oh and before I forget, the lovely @callsignC30 reviewed Scent of a Woman on TwiFicPromotions  a few weeks ago and said lots of lovely things about it....if you haven't seen the review and would like to, here is the link :-)

A little unbeta'd teaser while beans827 performs her magic on the chapter:

From Chapter 12-



“Edward, can I ask you a question?”


He glanced up from his notebook and nodded slowly when he met my eyes. I was lost for long moments, floating in the warm golden sea of his eyes. Beautiful.


I shook my head to rid myself of its sudden stupor and plucked up my courage, “This may seem like a really strange question, but have we met before? You seem very familiar to me, but I just can’t seem to place where I know you from.”


Right in front of my eyes, Edward’s face broke out into the most brilliant smile I had ever seen. Then he lifted my fingers to his lips, just like I had seen him do before in my dreams, and gently kissed my knuckles before whispering, “Yes Bella, we have met before, but I’m not sure you’ll believe me as to where.”


My fingers were tingling from the contact with his cold hand and cold lips and it was a minute before his words caught up with me. What the hell did he mean?


Forks 2005

-Edward-

She remembered me!

Or, at the very least, it seemed that her subconscious knew me, knew that I was familiar and was trying to bring me to the surface of Bella’s brain through her vivid dreams. Could it be this easy? Could I simply tell Bella that we’d met each other before in her previous lives and the prompt would trigger her mind to remember everything?

Bella’s question threw me for a loop; never once had my soul mate recognized me to this extent. Our souls had always been drawn together naturally and I had used that, and the fact that I could read my love’s mind, to my advantage in pursuing a relationship.

She remembered me!

That’s all I could think about as I watched her, watching me, nervously biting her lip after she had asked her question. I was leaving her hanging as I stared at her, her nervousness increasing as I worked through the feelings her recognition caused, my inner turmoil as I sorted through a half dozen scenarios about what to tell her.

She remembered me!

Without realizing it, my hand had snaked across the table and taken hers within its firm grip. The feel of her warm skin, her blood flowing so close to the surface, each heartbeat pulsing against the pads of my fingers woke me from the daze her words invoked.

The desire to touch her, to feel her warm skin against mine had always been strong, overpowering, and that had not waned over time. I had never been able to get close enough to her to be satisfied, not even in the throes of passion that we had shared over the years.

Could it be different…more…all encompassing, if she knew all there was to know? Would our union transcend the highest plane if she knew and remembered how deep our bond truly was?

........... and later

Emmett couldn’t stop smiling as he rounded the corner. He was getting the chance to talk to Bella in person, the object of his brother’s affection. Emmett sorely missed his human brother, Ethan, long dead these many years, and was jumping at the bit to take me under his wing and impart his knowledge of the fairer sex.

As soon as I saw them at the end of the hall, I stopped breathing and slumped against the wall as if weak with illness and whispered to him, so fast and so softly that Bella had no idea we were even conversing, to stand between Bella and I until we were safely away from the school.

“Thank you, Bella. I think I might have come back to school a little early, I’m not quite feeling myself just yet.”

She nodded and started to walk back to the classroom as I moved away from the wall and walked towards the front door with Emmett pretending to support me. Bella called out to me just before we reached the outside world.

“Don’t think I’ve forgotten that you haven’t yet answered my question, Edward Cullen.”

Emmett’s eyebrows rose and he couldn’t help himself, “Dude,” he whispered, “has Bella asked you out?” then grunted as I elbowed him hard in the side.

------------ and a little cliffy based on the story summary:



Story Summary: When Edward vaulted over the Volvo to save Bella from being crushed by the van, Alice had heard him whisper, "Not her!". What she didn't hear were the next two, "Not again!".

Teaser - Chapter 6 of Menage a Trois - Camaraderie

Finally Chapter 6 of Menage a Trois is with my beta so thought I would send out a little teaser while your waiting.

First some pic teasers:

And now for the unbeta'd tease:

Once Jasper was settled into West Point, he had a lot more free weekends and spent all of them with us in New York. I hadn’t had a really close male friend for years, probably not since college, and Jasper surprisingly filled that role with little effort, despite his past with Bella. I’d known the boys from the work band for longer, and although they were all good mates, we usually only hung out on a group basis, never really one on one.

Jasper and I bonded over our love of music initially. Whenever he was in town, we spent hours together mucking around on my guitars and some of my other instruments. Hours disappeared as if they were mere minutes in his company. Jasper was a whizz at finger style blues guitar which I had only ever dabbled in before and we spent many an afternoon with Jasper teaching me some of his favorite old blues songs. He was a great teacher…very patient and focused. In return I taught him some classical songs including a version of Clare de Lune written for two guitars. It was one of my favorite pieces and sounded amazing with our two guitars harmonizing.


Bella was usually quite content to sit and listen or read a book while we jammed together. She refused to let me teach her, although I would’ve dearly loved to and I’d tried to convince her to let me a number of times over the last few months. She kept insisting that an old boyfriend had tried, but that she was all thumbs and she just wasn’t coordinated enough. The boyfriend, James, had ended up frustrated with her and all they’d done was fight. She didn’t want that to happen with us and she kept reminding me that she was more than happy to simply be my groupie.


Tonight, as usual I gave in, probably because I loved it when Bella wanted to role play…and holy hell my favorite was when she pretended to be my groupie. So sue me…who wouldn’t like their woman going all fangirl over them?


Suzanne

3rd Place Winner - anon Beautiful Edward Challenge - Beauty Crowds Me

Hi All,

I'm so excited and needed to share - my little one shot 'Beauty Crowds Me' won 3rd place in the Beautiful Edward Challenge yesterday. It was an anonymous contest so this is the first time its been posted on my profile.  I received a 3rd place banner for "Delectable Edward" as the prize :-)

Yay - my fave Edward doing the STRUT from New Moon. Sigh!

Here is a little banner I made for the story on Paint...it's basic but I think it conveys what the story is about:

Summary: Edward is beautiful, of that there is no doubt. His looks have opened so many doors for him, but it has closed just as many others. Has the door slammed shut on what he truly wants? Beautiful Edward Challenge Entry.


Link to Beauty Crowds Me on my fanfiction profile here

Link to Beautiful Edward Challenge entries here if you would like to read the other entries to the contest

Congratulation to the other winners - albymangroves, mpg82 and ILoveTweedward :-)

Suzanne

Fandom for Preemies Contribution - Mistress of my Heart

I have contributed a one-shot to be included in a compilation of stories for the Fandom for Preemies which is raising money for the March of Dimes organization.  If you want to know more about this - click on the Fandom for Preemies button on the top right hand corner of my blog.  If you donate a minimum of $5 for a Preemies virtual band with the March of Dimes organisation from 1 - 30 November 2010,  it entitles you to receive the compilation of stories.  Over 100 writers have contributed.  You can see a list of contributing authors on their blog.

My contribution is a one-shot is called Mistress of my Heart.  Here is the banner I've made for it plus a little teaser:

Teaser:

As I looked once more over the assortment of toys placed neatly on the dresser, my heart started to pump out of control again, my thoughts momentarily engaged in an inner debate. On one hand, I hoped with all my heart that Bella and I would be using these devices, yet conversely, I was also desperately scared that we would be leaving our naivety behind tonight and entering into the unknown. I wasn’t too afraid to admit that I was a little scared.



Nevertheless, I was having a hard time pinning down what it was that I was exactly afraid of. Inside, I was desperately worried that I wouldn’t like the planned activities for this evening and would have to go through the motions of submission, possibly for the rest of my life, simply to be with her.


Or, was I afraid that I would like it too much?


I had never thought of myself as a weak man or possessing any kind of a submissive nature. Quite the opposite, in fact. My job was in senior management at a large corporation – Financial Controller of Cullen Enterprises, and I directly managed a team of 50 accountants, planners and clerical staff. I was used to making decisions and giving orders all day, every day and, on most occasions, I also chaired the Board Meetings as the current Chairman since Carlisle Cullen himself, had recently moved into semi-retirement in order to spend time with his wife, Esme.


However, I loved it whenever Bella took the initiative in the bedroom, her every action showing me how much she loved and desired me. These times had been so freeing for me, giving the power to someone else, not having to be the one always responsible for making decisions, to be able to simply feel and respond.


My future happiness was dependent on this night and right at this moment my gut was churning and I could feel myself starting to even sweat a little at the thought that this last ditch attempt with Bella might fail.



Please check out the Fandom for Preemies link - it is for a very good cause.

Suzanne

My entry in the anonymous In the Closet Contest - Covet

..........and you all  thought I was being lazy over the last month because there were no Scent or Menage updates!

I wrote a little (ok - a not so little) Edward/Jasper vamp slash one-shot for the anonymous In the Closet contest.  The contest has finished and the winners were announced this morning so we can post on our profiles now- congrats to Angstgoddess003 and PastichePen for first  and second place wins in the M/M category - lovely stories.   If you haven't already, go here to read all the entries from the contest.

Here is the banner for my one-shot - Covet - made by the lovely Christine from Christag_banners

And the link to the fic on my Fan Fiction profile is here.

The one-shot is written completely from Jasper's POV

Summary:

What do you do when you meet the love of your existence a year after you marry the saviour of your soul?  Edward and Jasper thought they were doomed to a life of longing and regret until they meet someone who holds the key to unlock their future.

Hope you enjoy.

Suzanne

Age of Edward 2010 Contest Entry

I have been having a little addiction to fanfiction contests over the last month so my regular stories have been on hold for a little while.  I have entered 2 anonymous contests which are still running so I cannot post any details as yet.  I have also just posted "C'est la Vie", my entry for the 2010 Age of Edward contest which is based in Versailles Paris in the 18th Century.

Here is the link to the fic on fanfiction.net:
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/6365208/1/Cest_la_Vie

Here is the link to the contest page on fanfiction.net so you can read the other stories:
http://www.fanfiction.net/community/Age_of_Edward_2010/84445/

There is also an anonymous banner contest and a lovely lady (who I can't name yet) made the above banner for this story and has entered the contest.  To see all the banners, they are on the Age of Edward blog here:
http://www.ageofedward.com/?page_id=102

To give you an idea of what life was like in Versailles in these times, I thought I would post this vid from the movie Marie Antoinette starring Kirsten Dunst. 

Well, if you have been following me for a while, you know I am big into researching the era's and places I write about so here are some pics of real life people and places that are referred to in my story.  Luckily I worked in Paris for a little while a few (quite a few) years ago and visited Versailles the township for lunch with the people I worked with and who lived there.  After a very long and rather alcoholic lunch they took us on a guided tour of the Palace gardens and the palace itself.   It is utterly amazing...and beautiful.

The Palace:

The Theatre within the Palace

The Folly in the gardens of Versailles

 

A pic from the movie Marie-Antoinette to give you idea of the reception rooms and the fashions of the day:

Paintings of real people referred to:

Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette

Marie-Antoinette in full court dress

Marie-Antoinette with 3 of her children

princesse de Lamballe, the Queen's best friend who met a terrible death in the hands of the mob

Comte de Artois - The Kings brother and friend to the Queen

I had so much fun writing this story, hope you enjoy reading it.

Suzanne

Teaser for Chapter 5 - Menage a Trois

Chapter 5 has been written and sent to my beta and pre-reader to check out before I post.  While we are waiting a few days, here is a little teaser for what's coming up...

As we sat around the table drinking, talking and stuffing ourselves on the Chinese food I had brought, I watched the interaction between Jasper and Bella. I could tell that they were very fond of each other; both comfortable with showing affection for each other and talking animatedly of their time at school. Bella recounted how Jasper had listened to her for hours gushing about her first boyfriend, some guy called Mike Newton, even though she was pretty sure that Jasper had a crush on him too.



Jasper had looked at her in shock at her words, startled enough to blurt out, “I never had a crush on that weasel, Mike Newton. Seriously, Swan. You are delusional.” He rolled his eyes at her and shook his head.


Bella blushed beautifully, “Jasper Whitlock, don’t you lie to me. You spent hours talking about Mike with me. You so too had a crush.”


“Bella, sometimes you are so clueless. I talked to you about Mike Newton because that’s who you wanted to talk about and that’s what friends do! Mike fucking lame ass Newton was not the person I had a crush on in senior year!”


Bella looked crestfallen for a minute, “Oh…of course…Lauren.”


Hang on a second. Lauren is not a fucking boy’s name!


Bella looked down at her hands clasped on the table top and hid behind her curtain of hair for a minute, completely missing Jasper rolling his eyes at her again. But I did not. I suddenly knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that Jasper had meant Bella.


Ohhhh...Jasper swung both ways. Bella conveniently left out that little nugget of information!


This was not good news.


Bella finally looked up and glared at Jasper, before snarling at him. “Jasper, I’ve never understood what you saw in the skank. That Bitch hated my guts and made my life miserable. I’m still a little pissed at you.”


Jasper reached out his hand and gripped Bella’s fingers which were clenched into a fist. “Okay, okay, I admit that hooking up with Lauren was probably a big mistake. Are you happy now?”


“Probably a big mistake, Jasper?” Bella questioned.


I burst into laughter as Jasper fluttered his eyelashes at Bella, which was completely at odds with his very masculine presence. “Are you two seriously still arguing about a hook-up that happened ten years ago?”


Bella and Jasper turned towards me at my words, both looking at me rather sheepishly. Jasper shrugged. “It’s what we do; we reminisce about the good ole days.” He said in his deep southern drawl as he drew Bella into his arms for a hug.


I was almost certain by the end of that first night that Jasper still did, in fact, continue to have that crush on Bella. She, I was certain, had absolutely no idea. I comforted myself with the knowledge that if Jasper hadn’t told Bella by now of his feelings, then he was never going to, for whatever reason. I briefly wondered why he never had.


I don’t mind telling you that I was hesitant about leaving them alone at Bella’s apartment the next morning, but I had to head off to work and the thought that Bella was oblivious to Jasper’s feelings, made it marginally easier to leave them. I made it through the few days Jasper was in town by becoming quite good friends with the guy. What is that saying again? Keep your friends close and people who fancy your fiancé closer.


So that’s what I did. I planned ways to get closer to Jasper, to get to know him and reassure myself that he had no designs on my fiancé. In following this plan though, I found that we had quite a bit in common, and it turned out that I actually liked spending time with him. Bella was so happy that we got on so well. She didn’t say anything, but I could see her sitting there in the chair watching us joke around and getting lost in long involved conversations about books, classic boys’ movies and favorite bands. Her shining eyes and the little smile hovering around her mouth was enough to tell me how she felt about her two favorite men hitting it off.

Suzanne

Teaser for Chapter 12 - Scent of a Woman - Restraint

A little teaser for Chapter 12 while it's being beta'd by Beans827:

We arrived only moments before the bell sounded signalling the start of the school day. Bella was already here, her large red truck sticking out like a sore thumb amongst all the boring suburban vehicles. Her scent lingered in her truck, which we passed on the way to the front entrance, as well as in the hallway as we separated into our various classes.



My first class today was Math; my next was Biology with Bella. My stomach roiled, it felt like a mass of butterflies were flying around in there. I wondered whether I had actually drunk too much before coming to school. I had never heard of a vampire vomiting up blood before, but I was thinking I might be the first. The math class seemed to take forever, when finally the bell sounded and I rushed to the lab.

I wanted to be there first to mentally prepare myself for meeting Bella again. Emmett was in the next room and for once he kept himself reined in and resisted teasing me. In fact, according to his thoughts, he was almost as nervous as I was about this class with Bella. Despite all the teasing and the rough-housing that Emmett enjoyed with Jasper and me, he truly loved the family with a depth that would seem quite surprising if you took him at face value. Underneath his large build, he had such a heart of gold and was genuinely overjoyed that I might, in his view, have found someone to love. It didn’t faze him one little bit that Bella was human, unlike a few others in the family who were plagued with concerns.

A sudden case of nerves hit me as more students starting filing into the room. I felt exactly like a seventeen year old boy with his first crush. I don’t even think I felt this nervous around a girl when I was actually a human seventeen year old. In every other time that I had found my soul mate in her previous lives, she had been a little older, and circumstances were always such that our relationships had occurred in an adult environment.

How was this going to work? I was starting to panic, my supposed plans for the day had completely flown from my brain. Bella was 17 and in 2005 that was considered very young. She was too young to be involved in a serious relationship, too young to consider marriage. How would I be able to protect her if we would only be able to be with each other on occasion? My mind was going haywire. What the hell was I thinking? I don’t think I’m ready to do this. I had even gone so far as to stand up to leave the room when I felt a wave of calm descend over me and Jasper’s whispered words, “You can do this, Edward.”

I took a deep breath and thanked Jasper under my breath. It wasn’t like this was the first time I had had to approach my soul mate when technically she didn’t know me from Adam. Mind you, not knowing what Bella was thinking was an added complication I had never had to face before. Along with the alluring call of her blood, the lack of access to her mind had certainly been sent to try me after all this time.

I closed my eyes to centre myself and it was at that point in time that I felt the pull my body had towards Bella kick in. I opened my eyes and there she was, standing in the doorway staring at me, as if she could hardly believe her eyes. As if in a daze she almost glided across the floor, past the other tables and slipped into her seat, never taking her eyes from mine. Maybe this wouldn’t be so hard after all?

Her heaven-scented blood, pumping through her delicate purple veins just below the surface of her pale skin, still called to me but the pull was so much less than it had been a week ago. My throat still burned, quite strongly in fact, but it was manageable, with enough concentration. I smiled at her and opened my mouth to introduce myself.....

Suzanne

New Banner

I am just so excited.  I found out one of my story reviewers makes banners.  Really good banners.  As you could probably tell by now, mine have all been made by me on paint and they have been very very basic. The lovely Christine from Christag Banners has made me one for Menage a Trois which I completely adore. Here it is:

Christine's blog has heaps of other lovely banners that she has made here:

Christine has made me a few more but they are for stories not posted yet but coming soon!

Suzanne

Pics for Chapter 11 - Scent of a Woman

Chapter 11 has just been posted on twilighted, fan fiction and the writers coffee shop library today.  Here are some pics to accompany the story, as there are quite a few real life people and places from the 1920's and events mentioned in the chapter, that I thought might interest a few readers.

First up is Fred Astaire dancing on Broadway with his sister Adele in 1921. 

Edward reads a book given to him by Carlisle as a bit of an in joke called "The Voyages of Dr Doolittle about a man who can hear and understand animals.  The book was published in 1922 and won the Newberry Medal in 1923.

Here is the church that Edward attends with Elizabeth's family. It is the Lakeview Presbyterian Church on Addison Street in Chicago, built in 1888.

 
Edward takes Elizabeth on an outing to The Art Institute on  Michigan Avenue overlooking the Lakefront.

The painting Paris Street; Rainy Day by Caillebotte that Elizabeth is fascinated with and where Edward vows that he will take her and fulfill all of their young dreams.

A photo of Navy Pier where Edward and Elizabeth visited various amusements.

A photo of an early photomaton from 1927.  These were in New York at this time and in Paris but I'm not too sure about Chicago, so I took a little artistic licence here for the story....plus I needed to fill Edward's memento box!

Coming up in Chapter 12:

What was Bella dreaming of when Edward, Carlisle and Emmett visited her room?

Edward goes back to school.....

Teaser - Chapter 4 of Menage a Trois - Beautiful

This chapter is in Edwards POV and he has some secrets too....ah seeing a pattern here?

This chapter was going to have a little on Edward meeting Bella and then get on to the good stuff with what happened with Jasper before Bella walked in and surprised them.

But, Edward, being Edward is a bit of a romantic and he likes to take his time when talking about the love he has for Bella....

It was cold and I scooted back into the bed, under the covers, drawing Bella back into my chest. She hummed in pleasure and kissed my shoulder before slipping into a deep sleep. I thought I would be following shortly thereafter but sleep eluded me as I pondered the revelations I had made as we were making love. Yes that’s right, making love. It hadn’t just been sex, not from the first moment I had laid eyes on her.

And then Edward meets Jasper....

After work the next day, I grabbed some beers and Chinese takeout on the way over to Bella’s and arrived just a few minutes late. As I knocked on the door, Bella opened it and then stepped aside to introduce me to Jasper Whitlock, her best friend.

I had only taken two steps into the room, when I looked up, and just stopped. Before me was a very tall, very good looking, blond man in khaki trousers and a black short sleeved shirt. I saw the hint of a tattoo just poking out of the sleeve on his right arm. I felt the breath knocked out of me. This blond god of a man was my fiancé’s best friend?

And then he looked up at me and his cerulean blue eyes just seemed to see right inside me and I shivered.

dun dun dun.....

The chapter is being beta'd right now so hopefully will be in a fit state to be posted soon.

Suz

Teaser for Chapter 11 - Scent of a Woman - Radiant

The story so far:

Edward sees Bella in class on her first day in Forks and realizes she is the reincarnation of his first love and soulmate, Elizabeth, who was killed most heinously, leading him to start his vengeful killing spree back in the 1920's. Unfortunately Edward doesn't get his happily ever after when meeting Bella just yet, because unlike Elizabeth, Bella is his singer and he nearly kills her himself in the classroom.

Carlisle comes up with a plan to desensitise Edward to Bella's blood so that he can be around her without killing her. While he is submerging himself in Bella's scent, Edward reminisces about his love for her in her previous life when her name was Elizabeth...

In the last chapter, Edward finally revealed himself to Elizabeth after realizing that he knew her when he was human and they have just gone on their first date to the cinema and then onto to supper...

Dancing with Elizabeth was like nothing I had ever known before. My entire body was alive with an electric charge where we touched. Her slender fingers gathered in my hand, the warmth of her body burning through the material of my jacket and shirt, all the way through to my sensitive skin beneath. The soft warmth of her cheek resting against the cold skin of my neck and her generous breasts squashed against my chest, the inside of my thigh against her hip as I led her around the floor.

Every sense I possessed was attuned to every nuance of her breath, every tiny movement she made, every thought running through her mind. So much so that all the other voices in my head were muted and all I could hear was her thoughts and her infinite joy in being held in my arms again.

I glanced around and confirmed that we were alone in the room before I slipped my arms around her waist and pulled her closer to me.

“Elizabeth, one day, if it is the very last thing I do, we will be living in Paris. You will be painting and I will be composing. We will have our happy ever after. I promise you.”

The sound of a throat clearing behind me, jerked me to my senses. In that short time, a couple of old men had entered the room and were glaring at us. I must confess, being around Elizabeth was proving that whenever she was near, I was oblivious to the world around me. Only she existed for me.

Elizabeth blushed and confirmed that she was ready to leave. We sauntered out of the room and one of the old men winked at me as I walked past. He was thinking that if he was younger he would have given me a run for my money with the beautiful young lady. My arm crept around Elizabeth’s waist then and as she looked at me quizzically, I muttered “Dirty old man.”

Teaser 2 - Chap 3 of Menage a Trois

Chap 3 - Missed Opportunities - Jasper



All too soon, the school year came to an end and we were forced to go our separate ways. It had always been a tradition in my family to join the military and I was no different. Being brought up in that life, I had made the decision a long time ago to follow in my father’s footsteps and joined the army. I was starting basic training at Fort Benning in Georgia. Bella had been accepted into Harvard Business School in Boston seeing as how she was hell bent on getting out of Forks as soon as she could.

Our parting had been bittersweet and we had promised each other faithfully to stay in touch. To our credit, we did stay in touch by text, email and phone calls. My training was gruelling and time off was at a minimum. Then one Friday, six months after training had commenced, I had four days off and I used them to surprise Bella at her dorm.

Earlier in the day she had told me that she was staying in that night and painting her nails so I felt confident that we would be able to catch up in person. I could barely contain my excitement at seeing her again and hoped that this time she might see me as something more than a friend.

As soon as my plane had touched down, I had hailed a cab and directed it straight to Bella’s place. I decided I could check in to the hotel later, but I couldn’t wait any longer to see her. I was still wearing the army fatigues that I had donned early in the morning and hoped Bella wouldn’t mind that I hadn’t taken the time to change into civilian wear.

On my way through the university grounds, I came across a flower bed with pale pink and white tulips, Bella’s favourite. I surreptiously reached out and snagged a handful of the not quite open buds to give to my girl.

I found her dorm room easily and was just about to lift my hand to knock when I heard the sound of Bella moaning coming from the other side. My heart plummeted at the sound. Bella had told me only a few days ago that she had broken up with yet another boyfriend before it had gotten serious because it just hadn’t felt right. Judging by the sounds coming from the room beyond, Bella had quickly found someone else to replace the loser.

My hands clenched at my sides, mirroring the pain in my heart, as I watched dispassionately as the mangled remains of the flower posy scattered over the floor in front of Bella’s door.

Thank God I had not told Bella I was coming. It would have been too mortifying to have blurted out my feelings for her only to find that she already had someone else in her life. I leaned my forehead against the door just to catch a whiff of the heady scent that was Bella’s and then I was leaving. No sooner had I rested my weight against the door than it sprang open, the catch obviously unhooked. What greeted my eyes was like a scene from my favorite porn movie.

Pic and teaser for Chap 3 of Menage a Trois

Coming up soon - Chapter 3: Jasper's POV





I found out that day that Bella had only moved to town a few weeks earlier than I had and she had thought that she had become friends with Jessica and Lauren. Once the novelty of hanging out with the new girl had worn off, they had reverted to their normal selves. The last week had been a litany of nasty comments about her lack of trendy clothes, her boring brown hair and eyes, her lack of make-up and being the police chief’s goody two- shoes daughter.

Today they had started on the absence of her mother and she had fled to the library to stay out of their way. I shyly admitted to hiding out as well, although Bella confessed to not understanding why such a cute boy was worried about being picked on. I blushed, and once Bella realized what she had said, she blushed as well. By the end of lunch, we had become firm friends and agreed to meet in the same spot next week.

On Monday morning, I was actually looking forward to school and my planned assignation with Bella in the library. Jessica had been particularly nasty to Bella that morning as Mike Newton had paid close attention to Bella in gym class and everybody but Mike, knew that Jessica regarded him as her property. The whole lunchtime was spent dissecting Jessica’s every comment and a discussion of Mike Newton’s manly perfection.

Yes, I was forced to listen to Bella catalogue all of Mike Newton’s finer points for the better part of 30 minutes and as each minute passed, my heart plummeted further into my stomach with the knowledge that Bella only saw me as a friend. It was my own fault. I had sat there through the whole diatribe and agreed with everything Bella said. I argued with myself that I would rather have Bella as a friend than as nothing at all, so I kept quiet about how I really felt.

Not long to wait - just a little fine-tuning and the chapter will be uploaded.

Suzanne