Please Note: Alternating points of view—Bella/Edward/Bella
36. You'd like to know
Silence reigned until after we'd finally made it through the border crossing into Canada.
Although Jasper seemed to have relaxed, Emmett most certainly had not. He was uncharacteristically quiet, his solemn face clearly reflected in the side window as he stared out into the night.
When he absentmindedly went to put his passport back in his jacket pocket, I reached out and snatched it out of his hand.
"Hey!" he said, but he didn't make any effort to take it back.
"Oh look!" I said, holding it up. "According to this, you're not a Cullen."
"I am, but McCarty is my real name."
"I know that," I said softly. "Tell me, Emmett, what surname does Rosalie have in her current passport?"
"McCarty." The dimples on his cheeks made a momentary appearance. "We got married in Paris last year."
"Again," Jasper muttered.
"Don't you want to see my passport, Emmett?" I said, waving it up and down in front of him. "You can laugh at my photo if you like."
He took it from me and flicked through the blank pages until he found my personal details. "Oh!" he said. "That's not what I expected."
"No?"
"No. You're my—"
"Younger sister," I said, watching him straighten up in his seat, his thumb rubbing over the letters of our shared name on the smooth paper. "And so Rosalie is my sister-in-law."
His whole demeanour changed then, and there was the irrepressible brother I knew and loved once more, complete with twinkling eyes and a wide, dimpled grin.
"What does that make Edward?" he asked.
"My best friend, I guess." I smiled, thinking of how true that was becoming.
"And Tanya?"
"Same."
"And where does that leave me?" Jasper asked.
I turned around to face him, and as I did, Emmett sniggered. Jasper's eyes were fixed firmly on the wet road in front of us, his nose angled toward the stream of damp, fresh air coming in through the window.
"Well, you are my sire, I suppose," I said.
"Nothing else?" He raised an eyebrow.
"The pain in my butt?"
"Nice," he said dryly. Emmett's sniggering got a little louder.
"The tiny stone in my shoe?"
"More like your rock," Jasper muttered, slightly sullen.
"The person I trust more than anyone," I whispered.
He nodded. No smile, no fist pump, just a tiny nod. Then one of his hands left the steering wheel and crept along the leather of the bench seat to touch mine.
…
Carlisle and Esme had cleared the dirt road and opened up the cabin in time for our arrival, and that made me feel all the more guilty for what Rosalie and I were about to do.
While Esme wrapped her arms around Alice and guided her through the cabin into her and Carlisle's bedroom, Rosalie, Tanya and I sat down on the upholstered couches in the living area to bring Carlisle fully up to date with recent events and developments.
He paced up and down as we spoke, listening intently and looking suitably shocked and upset at what Alice had done. Internally, though, he believed Riley's death to be a regrettable but convenient tragedy.
Just as I had expected, he had a multitude of questions. I tried my best to answer those I could without Jasper and Bella present while Rosalie and Tanya disappeared upstairs to the bedrooms. They returned carrying three large holdalls, which they placed on the floor by the front door.
"What are you doing?" Carlisle said, looking back and forth between the women and me. "You've only just got here. Aren't you staying?"
"We're going to stay with Tanya," Rosalie said, looking at me for moral support.
Esme appeared in the bedroom doorway with her arms crossed in front of her. "What on earth for, Rosalie? This is your home. Edward?"
"I'm sorry, Esme," I said. "My home is with Tanya now. I don't want to be apart from her."
Esme looked crestfallen, but the smile on Tanya's face was radiant. Her mind was flooded with visions of what she was going to do to me as soon as we were alone in her bedroom, and instantly my body was in a heightened state of arousal.
A strangled noise came from the room behind Esme, and suddenly I was seeing double the visions. My knees were in serious danger of buckling under me if I didn't regain my focus on the family matters at hand.
"Rosalie?" Esme said, her voice quivering.
My sister looked down at her feet and whispered, "I want to be with my husband, Esme."
"Why won't Emmett be here with us?" Carlisle asked.
"He won't leave Bella. Especially not after…" Rosalie's eyes drifted toward the wall which separated us from Alice.
"I see," Carlisle said, resigned. "And Bella won't stay here for the same reason." Nor Jasper, he thought.
"No," I said, shifting from foot to foot in an effort to make my jeans feel less constricting.
"I've asked Eleazar and Carmen if they wouldn't mind vacating their rooms while everyone is here," Tanya said. "I presume it's acceptable for them to stay here with you, Carlisle?"
"Of course. Anytime." The tightness around his eyes belied his amenable tone.
Carlisle and Esme stepped forward to embrace each of us in turn, but there was a distinct air of tension in the room that made Carlisle's conversations about my lack of sexual experience seem suddenly tolerable. In fact, I had not felt this on edge around my parents since the day I returned from my rebellious foray into feeding from the dregs of human society.
"Let us know when the rest of the family arrives, son," Carlisle said, looking pointedly at me, "and we'll come and join you in your new home."
The three of us picked up the holdalls, went outside and loaded them into the trunk of Rosalie's car. Then, as we climbed into our seats, I took the opportunity to discreetly adjust myself. I had a nasty feeling I was going to be uncomfortable for some hours to come.
"Didn't you pack anything for Jasper?" I asked Rosalie as she pulled slowly away from our parents' cabin.
"I put a couple of things in my bag for him," she replied. "He didn't want much. He said he's had everything that really matters with him for a while now."
…
As soon as we'd stored the vehicles and were clear of Vancouver's city streets, we were running.
It was good to be on solid ground again, even though that ground was somewhat sodden from all the rain, and the physical exertion helped me to get a hold on the emotions that had been threatening to break free in the truck.
We stayed under the cover of the forest until we'd hunted—a moose for me and a cougar each for the boys—then we headed up into the mountains, running one behind the other.
Emmett had been appalled by my adverse reaction to the desiccated remains of my dinner, vowing to "sort that shit out" as soon as we were in Denali, but somehow I doubted hunting would be the first thing on our agenda when we reached our destination.
We maintained a steady pace as we crossed into Alaska, and after some hours, the scents and the scenery became increasingly familiar. Then, once I'd declared I'd found my bearings, the race was on, and the speed was truly exhilarating.
Irina and Kate met us in front of their cabin, welcoming us with open arms, though I was the only one who dared to hug Kate. They directed us to our rooms, and there was an awkward moment when I realised that I would be sharing the master suite with Jasper.
"These are Carmen and Eleazar's rooms," Jasper said, frowning at his cousins.
"We didn't think Bella would want to be anywhere near the guest bedroom after last time," Kate said before she and Irina darted back down the stairs.
Jasper looked at me, eyebrows raised.
"Don't ask," I said, throwing my backpack on the bed.
I'd barely begun to unpack when I smelled them. Once upon a time their scents had made me feel longing and deep disappointment. The former had long since worn away.