Dangerously Beautiful • Carlisle Cullen

Chapter 9: Blooming relationships

Jasper knocked on the door, waiting for the distinct "come in" to ring from the occupant inside,  but it never came. "Miss Swan, it's Carlisle's nephew. Can I come in?" Jasper asked his accent a bit stronger as a strange sense of worry fell on him.

"Yeah." A meek voice was heard from inside. Jasper opened the hospital room door, and to his surprise, Colette Swan was nothing like the woman he had pictured in his head.

She seemed to be smaller in stature, bigger than Alice, but small nonetheless. She couldn't have been taller than five foot six if he had to guess. Her hair was ash brown, with natural highlights of a subtle dark red and chocolate brown. Her blue eyes were dim, but he could easily see how they were bright cornflower blue under the cloudiness of depression and stress.

Her skin was sun kissed but looked pale from sickness and the disturbing amount of artificial light. Freckles seemed to cover her body like a second skin as they were everywhere. He could tell she was thin, not unhealthy, but thin, but he could feel the strength roll off of her in waves. Just as he had underestimated his own mate in many instances, Jasper would have to watch out for Colette Swan. She was the epitome of hiding in plain sight, and in his opinion, perfect for his paternal figure.

As Jasper took in what was Colette, she couldn't help but do the same.

The first thing Cole had gotten from the boy who had just walked into her room was that overwhelming sense of power that he seemed to exude. He was not overbearing in height or weight, but a general unease seemed to follow him.

She could see how the three were related. Blond, though Jasper was more of a honey blond, and their distinct golden eyes must run in the family as the three that she had met all had the same, just slightly different variations.

Jasper's seemed to be a tad darker than the rest, more of an amber color than gold, but beautiful nonetheless. His build was nothing that was out of the ordinary, six foot two, broad shoulders, a subtle muscle definition, but one that she could see no less.

The two things that had caught her off guard, his military posture, and the southern accent that his twin seemed to lack. Subtle differences, but differences nonetheless.

"Good Morning Miss Swan." Jasper spoke, his eyes watching how she reached. "Please, none of that. Colette is fine, or better yet just Cole, Jasper." Surprise covered his face as a small laugh escaped her. "How did you-" "Carlisle." They spoke in unison, a chuckle coming from the blond boy.

Cole's laugh unfortunately turned into a coughing fit, one that Jasper tensed for. Carlisle had told him of her coughing fits, how they usually ended with blood being expelled from her lungs, but the intense burning never came. Jasper had actually realized that since he had stepped into the room, his hunger had practically vanished. She had no effect on him. Her scent seemed to cover him in a relaxing blanket, masking all the other scents in the hospital.

Colette's emotions were what he was mainly paying attention to, basking in if you will. He wondered how someone who had been through so much could have such positive emotions, even with being held in a hospital bed with a terminal disease.

Optimism and gratitude were the ones that made their way to the forefront, brief moments of amusement or curiosity, along with a bubble of doubt would make their presence known.

"Are you okay?" He asked after a moment of silence. She nodded, pointing to a glass of stagnant water that had been poured. "Can you hand me that?" She asked, flinching from her own voice as it cracked. Handing the woman the glass, he took a seat in the chair along the wall as he could tell, his standing was making her nervous.

After a beat, Cole spoke. "Carlisle said you have taken an interest in psychology. He thought you could take a crack at me." She joked. "It's been a passion since I was young." Jasper told her and she smiled. "You've got to follow your dreams Jasper. Even if they seem ridiculous." She told the boy and he nodded, a small smile on his face.

"Before we start, I just wanted to tell you that anything that we talk about, it won't leave this room. Completely confidential." Jasper told her and she nodded in agreement. "Thank you." "Where would you like to begin?" He asked. "The beginning would probably be the best place." She chuckled. He nodded, a small grin on his face.

"Whenever you're ready." He told her and her nerves flared to the surface along with hate and anger.

"It was 2003."

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Jasper listened to Colette tell her story, holding back his feral thoughts of finding the man who did this to her, and destroying him.

It was after she had told him what had happened to her, that he felt the connection form. It was the same, if not stronger, than the ones he shared with his family.

"You know, only my brother, Rosalie, and your father know everything." Cole whispered as she whipped her eyes. "Did you want to keep it that way?" He asked, hoping she would say no, but the look on her face made him think otherwise. "I did at the beginning. Hell, Charlie didn't know anything until around six months after he was arrested. I completely shut down." Cole told him.

"And now?" "Now I still don't want the world to know what happened, but I also don't want to be known in Forks as the girl who blindly fell for a narcissistic asshole who beat her half to death, among other things. It doesn't look good for Charlie, being the Chief of Police and all." She stated, her eyes finding the sheets very interesting, as her finger played with a loose string.

"You know you didn't have to share with me." Jasper told her and she nodded. "I know. I thought about backing out at the last second. Not airing all my dirty laundry onto the son of my doctor, but when I saw you Jasper, something told me I should. I don't know what it was, but to be honest it kinda scares the hell out of me." Colette told the blond boy and he smiled at her.

"Would you believe me if I said I was the most antisocial of our entire family, sometimes going days without speaking to anyone other than my girlfriend?" Jasper asked as Cole shook her head. She couldn't. He had been so open with her, the one to start conversations with her.

"That feeling you had, it must have been felt in both directions. I feel it too. A sense of calm and trust?" He asked and she nodded. "Exactly like that." "It must have been meant to be then."

Jasper smiled as the Major seemed to accept her. He had noticed the change when he was first talking to her, how the Major seemed to be listening, captivated in a way by her words, her past.

Jasper could understand how Carlisle had such a hard time reining the Lord in as the Major snarled in his cage, demanding to be set free to rid the world of her abuser. But alas, the Major and the Lord had accepted Colette and for that Jasper was grateful.

With two alters, things get interesting when they don't see eye to eye, especially about a mate.

Jasper and the Major had decided that Colette was now considered family, and he would help her for as long as she needed, even if it took lifetimes to conquer.

A/N: This one didn't go too much off the original, but I mainly just flipped it around. I hope you like it and a little more detail on hopefully how I plan on the "family dynamic" go on the Cullens with the addition of Cole.

Love y'all,

~D