We walked through the house to a back family room. A
handsome, tall man with sandy blonde hair was sitting on a fluffy chair,
staring blankly at the television, not really watching what was on the screen.
Alice moved in front of him, brushing his hair from his face. He blinked a few
times, smiling at her lovingly before turning to look at me. “Ms. Swan?” he
asked, his voice deep and resonant. He stood up with great difficulty, holding
out a gnarled hand. I shook it gingerly, afraid that I’d cause more damage.
“Please, call me Bella,” I smiled. “It’s a pleasure to meet
you, Jasper.”
“And you as well,” he said. His voice had a subtle drawl and
it had a musical quality. “Please, have a seat. Ali, can you get Bella some
sweet tea?”
“Sure, Jazzy,” she replied, kissing his temple and dancing
out of the room.
Jasper gallantly helped me to sit in the couch, despite the
stiffness of his movements. He was a gentleman, but I could see in his blue
eyes how much he had lost and how much Esme had broken him. “Alice told me
about Edward and your situation with him. I remember him when I worked for, um,
her. He was a sweet, loving man, even
despite her treatment of him.” He took a breath, closing his eyes and running
his hands through his hair. “I won’t tell you Edward’s story. That’s up to him,
but I will tell you mine. Alice and I spoke to that private detective, but we
didn’t share everything.”
Alice came back with a tray of iced tea. “Here, Jazzy. I’ll
let you two talk. I do have some medication for you, if it becomes too much,”
Alice said, placing the tray on the cocktail table. She kissed him tenderly,
leaving us in the family room.
“Alice is a godsend. I love her so much. She’s everything I’ve never had in my life,” Jasper murmured, his eyes glazing over.
