Note – I do not own Twilight.

Chapter 1 – He liked to watch her

It would seem to an outsider that he was cold and cruel towards the world. He was an enigma and often treated as one would treat a dangerous animal. He would charm others into a warm sense of security; give them peace before he struck with deadly accuracy. When you stood up against the Volturi, the rules were the rules.

When you stood up against Aro Volturi, there were only his rules.

However, if you took the time to watch Aro Volturi closely you would see that behind the games and treachery, there was a mischievous and childlike nature. He enjoyed his games, playing his riddles and moving his board pieces. He took comfort in his family and cared for them, albeit in his own way.

Aro is a worldly man of literature and history. He soaked up knowledge and enjoyed learning anything he could place his elegant hands on. He was rarely confused and definitely would never admit to even himself when he was puzzled. However, as he sat on his throne in quiet contemplation, he realized that he has been puzzled for quite some time.

The object of his puzzlement was in the form of a 24 year old mortal. Jennifer was her name. A common name for a seemingly common woman, but as he grew to become accustomed to her presence, he realized there was nothing common to this woman. Jennifer is a petite woman, with her head barely reaching his shoulders. Her rich chestnut hair was always kept cleanly cut to her shoulders and her bangs always seemed to naturally part to the side. It was her eyes that drew him in the beginning. Her eyes were the lightest shade of blue, a trait that he was glad to have passed down to her lovely daughter. Any mortal man would be drawn to those eyes; it would also seem that quite a few immortal ones were drawn as well, his loyal tracker guard Demetri for one along with his dear Jane.

Jennifer was brought forth to the Volturi to apply for the need of an accountant, due to the untimely firing of the previous accountant. He remembered the meeting like it happened yesterday. She gracefully sat next to him as he drilled her with personal question after personal question. At the time, she was a single mother with a then 4 year old daughter, recently moved to Volterra. It was when the nature of the residents that inhabited the castle was brought forth to her attention that he began to truly notice her. There was no fear or trepidation once the truth was presented to her, just a calm sense of disbelief, followed by a sense of awe that he seeped into his body. He was no stranger to mortals being in awe of him; however, this was the first time that he found himself reveling in it.

She truly had a brilliant mind. The woman is sharp witted, entirely too clever for her own good and harbored a truly gentle soul. When he first saw her he figured she would be like most and jump at the opportunity to become one of them. However, it was in her contract that she truly stood apart from the rest of the human staff that were employed. The contract stated that she would chose to postpone any discussions about the change until her daughter was at least 10 years of age. Her daughter would remain in her care after the change took place and would also be given the choice to turn when she was 18 years of age. If her employment was to be terminated at any point, the Volturi would be responsible for the guidance of her child, his brother Marcus to be exact.

To this day he has found this request odd at the time, for she had yet to meet his aloof and quiet brother.

It took days of negotiation before she was satisfied with the contract that the Volturi offered her. The rest of the coven questioned his motives, for the common woman and her daughter could just as easily be killed in one simple moment. There were thousands of suitable applicants that the Volturi could hire. But Aro was persistent, for some reason, only she would do.

And so it happened. Jennifer finally accepted their terms and with a gentle handshake, Aro was intrigued and has been since that fateful day. Her mind and memories were a glorious puzzle! She truly was brilliant, and he found that he had come to look forward to their meetings. In time, he slowly began to grace her skin with the tiniest of touches, just to catch a glimpse of her life. Aro watched as she raised her daughter, Emaline, alone in the home that was provided to her by the Volturi on the castle grounds. How carefully she balanced her employment with a coven of centuries old vampires with the rambunctious livelihood of a 4 year old child was beyond words. But she did it with a rare form of elegance that he had rarely experienced with a vampire much let alone a human female.

It was after 2 years of her tenure when he realized, he liked watching her. There had been at least 4 secretaries that have arrived and departed during her tenure with the Volturi. However, not Jennifer, she accepted the countless financial reports, business models, event planning and even the secretarial work when a new human had not been found with ease. She never outwardly complained, however he knew immediately when he intentionally stroked her inner fire. He found himself trying to do it often. It began a harmless game that he chose to play and she didn't disappoint him.

She would spend her time away from them with her daughter mostly, but when her daughter left to visit her parents in London she would stay at home and sew or some other hobby that she enjoyed. She would watch television shows on the Discovery Channel or invest hours in movies. Quite an interesting change from the normal human employee, most of them chose to be seen with the Volturi at one of their many events. Aro chuckled as he remembered the first event that she was forced to attend with the Volturi. In the end, he had to threaten her with the prospect of Caius being her date before she conceded to his wishes. The language that flowed through her mind was positively sinful that evening.

Aro closed the book that was resting on his lap with a heavy thud. With the departure of Bianca, the itinerary for a business meeting in New York would fall on her. He grinned at the prospect of seeing her face and could just imagine the talk that she would have with Heidi this evening. He left the inner sanctum of the throne room and glided into her office with ease. She was turning on her computer and going through her planner, menial things that were nothing to others but were so precise to her.

He trailed his eyes slowly down her figure quickly before making his presence known with a slight touch on her bare shoulder. The Volterra summers could get warm and this morning seemed to follow the norm.

"Good Morning, Master Aro." She acknowledged his presence while updating her plan for the day.

"Buingiorno Cara. I trust that you had a pleasant evening? Young Emaline is well?" Aro questioned, as he lowered himself in the chair in front of her desk. He sat with his right leg over his left and his back straight, listening intently to everything she said.

"She's 8 going on 16, I swear she could seriously argue the sun into not shining on a sunny day." Jennifer groaned as she closed the planner. "I notice that we have an empty desk."

"Dear Bianca has left us," Aro sighed dramatically, "I trust you will rise to the occasion?"

Aro watched in glee as the cold set into her normally warm eyes while heat flushed her cheeks prettily. She cut her lovely blue eyes back to her planner and made a few quick notes before looking up at him. "The travel itinerary will be in your hands no later than noon today Master Aro."

"Splendid news! What would I ever do without you?" He exclaimed as he raised his hands to cover his childlike smile. He slowly stood and began to leave her office, much lighter than he was earlier. Before he left the office he looked over his shoulder and questioned her lightly, "I adore your shoes Cara, are they new?"

Jennifer gleamed up at him with a dazzling smile before sliding over to admire her shoes once more, "Now, if I didn't know any better, I would think you were looking at my legs, Master Aro." She teased him slightly before returning to her work once more.

'Yes', Aro thought as he left the office after glancing at her one last time.

Aro liked watching her.

Author Note: Here it is- chapter 1. Let me know what you think! Likes and dislikes! I hope everyone will give me their comments and buckle up for a fun ride. UPDATE: So! I must say I am not pleased with some of the bounciness on these chapters and have decided to edit the story a bit. Every chapter will be under the blade! Let's have some fun my loves! MaM