Chapter Nine
The sun is high in the sky by the time Peter and Charlotte arrive. Most of the wolves and humans have already returned from their slumber and rejoined us at the fireside.
Esme and Seth dropped by around nine o'clock in the morning on their way to the hospital and brought six dozen assorted jumbo muffins for the humans and wolves to have for breakfast.
When Angela woke up around eleven, she was so excited to see a jumbo chocolate chip banana muffin, that she literally hugged it. I proceeded to laugh hysterically, having never seen anyone hug a muffin before.
After that, some of us started a very gentle, human-friendly game of beach volleyball to pass the time.
I'm not sure what direction I thought Pete and Char would be coming from, but watching them emerge from the depths of the Pacific Ocean was not at all what I expected.
At least it's summer and they had the foresight to wear their bathing suits, so it doesn't appear too odd to any humans who may be watching at a distance.
"Greetings, Y'all!" Char smiles radiantly, as they swim ashore and join us at the fireside.
"It's cloudy here but it was dreadful sunny down South, so we ran east an' then swam up from California," Pete explains in answer to the confused looks from some of us. I, for one, am even more confused now though.
"Why would you be avoiding the sun, unless…oh gosh, we don't burn to death in sunlight, do we?" I worry. "I kind of assumed that was a myth…"
"Right, shit! I can't believe I forgot to tell you!" Em winces. "Um, you don't burn but you do sparkle. Very noticeably."
I'm about to complain about the ridiculous notion of vampires who sparkle when Peter gets a very confused look on his face. "Surely this composed, casual beauty, relaxin' with a human baby in her lap can't possibly be a newborn? Because none of this is very newborn-like behavior," he puzzles, gesturing broadly in my general direction.
"She's an anomaly, that's for sure." Uncle Jasper smirks. "I would have told you about her on the phone but I didn't think you'd believe me."
"No, I don't think I would have." Pete laughs. "You're certain she's a newborn?"
Uncle Jasper nods, slowly. "Emmy turned her himself. She woke up less than two days ago. We think the lack of bloodlust is her vampire gift."
News to me, but if it lets me be around my son, I'll take it.
"Jeebus, she's two damn days old?! That's the most preposterous thing I've ever heard. Do ya know how lucky ya are, Little Filly? Most of us spend an entire year tryin' not ta decimate large portions of the human population. An' yet here ya are, just chillin' on the beach." Pete chortles.
"I'm glad I amuse you, I guess. Personally, I'm pretty grateful that I don't have the urge to murder my son, but hey, call me crazy." I shrug.
"Oh Sugar, Pete doesn't mean to offend ya, he's just envious is all. Where we came from, things were never quite so peaceful as all this," Char qualifies.
I nod slowly. "Yeah, we heard a little bit about the wars. I imagine that must've been pretty awful." I frown, my brow furrowing.
"Pretty much, yep. But hey, let's not dwell on our tragic past when the present includes campfires an' beach volleyball. I mean damnnn, it sure seems like we came in the middle of a party." Pete grins, pulling up a chair for Char and another for himself.
"Either that or the calm before the storm." Uncle Jasper shrugs. "We've got two more newborns changing as we speak, in that house over yonder. And no guarantee they'll have control anything like Bella's."
"Shiiit. Whose bright idea was it to turn three newborns at once?" Pete challenges.
"Guilty," Uncle Jasper says, raising his hand. " I can't take credit for Bella. Emmy changed her because she was dying. Bella and Jackson are his mates. But the other two newborns I changed because they're family. Remember my sister Jane I told you about?" He begins.
"The one ya couldn't find after she got married?" Pete confirms.
"The very same. Turns out...Bella's father, Charlie, is her grandson. And his husband, Billy, was married to Jane's granddaughter, Sarah, and they had kids together. So Bella, and Jackson, and Jacob, and their twin sisters in Hawaii, are all Whitlocks, essentially. So when Charlie and Billy asked me to change 'em, I sure as hell wasn't gonna say no," Uncle Jasper informs him.
Peter looks torn between excitement and concern. "Well, I understand why ya did it. But you do know what these numbers are gonna look like to a certain Italian contingent. Not to mention the furry critters ya told me about." He grins.
"Yeah, I know. We have a sizeable problem on our hands. Let's wait until the other two wake up before we make a plan though, yeah? It might not hurt to know what kind of gifts, if any, they have, and factor those into our decision making," Uncle Jasper suggests, just as a new howl goes up. "Oh goody, seems like our numbers just keep on growin'." He grins.
Jackson strips and phases and Pete and Char jump back about ten feet in surprise.
"They're fuckin' huuuge!" Peter laughs nervously. "I know you said they were big but I wasn't expectin' a freakin' dire wolf!"
"Surprise!" Uncle Jasper snickers.
A few minutes later Jackson phases back. "Well, Jake, you'll be happy about this one."
"Why, who is it?" Jake puzzles.
"He's on his way. See if you can guess before he gets here." Jacks grins.
"Oh snap! I think I know!" Embry cheers.
Jake's eyes light up. "It can't be Quil...can it? He has a job at a B&B in Port Angeles for the summer..."
Embry shrugs. "I mighta, sorta, called him and told him to come home for the weekend."
"Embry!" Jacob laughs.
"What? He belongs in the pack, Jake. You know it." Embry shrugs, unapologetically.
A naked Quil runs through the woods and down the beach. Surprisingly, or maybe not so surprisingly at this point, Charlotte whistles.
"Now that is a fiiine specimen o' boyish masculinity." She smirks, licking her lips.
"I mean...yer not wrong." Pete snickers.
"Here we go again," I mutter. Aunt Alice giggles and tosses a pair of shorts to Quil as he runs up.
"Sweet, thanks." He nods in her general direction, though his eyes don't leave a certain pair of newly arrived Southerners. "Hi." He grins, putting on the shorts. "Name's Quil Ateara, the fifth, if you wanna get technical." He extends his hand to no one in particular. Pete and Char both reach for it.
"Pleasure's all mine, Honey." Char beams. "I'm Charlotte Whitlock, but you can just call me Babycakes."
Pete saunters up to Quil and whispers something in his ear and I find myself wishing Alice's choice of gym shorts left a little more to the imagination, as the effect of his words is immediate and very noticeable.
Char giggles. "Y'all, we'll be back in a little while, m'kay?"
The three of them disappear down the beach in the direction of a little cave I know of. We used to call it Flower Cave because it's surrounded by wildflowers. But I think after today, its name might need to be changed to Deflowering Cave.
"Well, I almost hope no more wolves phase now," Jackson admits.
"Why's that, Babe?" I puzzle.
"Because we're running out of vampires for them to hook up with." He smirks.
I ruffle his hair playfully and am about to ask if he and Em are ready for lunch when Leah jogs over from Dads'.
"I just got a text from Seth. Carlisle is gonna be doing my dad's bypass surgery this afternoon. I need to go be with my mom and Seth at the hospital." She frowns, her brow furrowed with worry.
"Do you want me to come with you?" I offer.
"No, thanks, Bells, but I'd like it if you could watch over your dads until I can get back here…" she suggests.
I nod. "Yeah, of course, no problem."
Leah breathes a sigh of relief. "Thanks, Bells. I'll come straight back after the surgery, as soon as I know that my dad is okay."
I smile and hug her, even though neither of us are big huggers. "Take your time, I've got this," I assure her.
"You're the best!" She phases on the fly and takes off into the woods.
"I'll text Esme to meet her outside the hospital with a change of clothes," Aunt Alice offers, pulling out her phone.
"Thanks." I nod. "I feel bad for Leah and Seth right now. I'm so grateful that our dads elected to become vampires. I can't imagine having to go through something like that with them. It must be so awful."
Jackson frowns. "I wish you could have been here when my mom died. I wish they had told you in time for the funeral."
"So do I." I sigh, holding his hand in mine. "Is there a place where she is buried that we can go to pay our respects? I have quite a few things I'd like to thank her for."
"Yeah, there is. I go there once a month and lay flowers. I've tried to get Jake to go, but he has a hard time with it. I think for me it was different. I was the only one who knew the truth about our parents.
"So from my perspective, Dads both lost her and it brought them even closer together and allowed them to finally go public with their love for one another. From everyone else's perspective, she was only ever with Billy. So when he and Charlie went public, it must have seemed like he just moved on and forgot about her.
"Or even worse, I think some people probably thought he was unfaithful to her before she died. Did you ever wonder about that? I know Jake did," he inquires.
"Honestly, I was so shocked when Charlie told me he was in love with Billy and they were moving in together. It never occurred to me to wonder when it started.
"From my perspective, I thought the only woman my dad was ever with was Renée and we all know how colossally that relationship failed. So I honestly believed Charlie was fully gay and had just been in denial until he started dating Billy which I assumed began while he was comforting his grieving friend," I explain.
"I really do want to talk to them both when they wake up and find out the whole story, start to finish. And I want to ask about this whole Tiffany Call thing," I admit, glancing at Embry.
"You and me both." Embry laughs bitterly. "My mom has never been willing to talk about who my dad is. I've always had no choice but to speculate. It wasn't until I saw Jackson's thoughts on the matter via the mindlink that it ever occurred to me it could be Billy or Charlie, though.
"To be honest, my mom was so hush-hush about it I always thought the real story must have been something sinister like maybe she was raped or something. Although, I guess in those days, sleeping with a married man was considered pretty sinister too." Embry frowns.
Jake chimes in after looking thoughtful for a while, "I think we can rule out Charlie. Your mom is Makah, not Quileute. Charlie isn't Quileute. If you were his kid, you wouldn't have phased."
Jackson nods. "That's right. I forgot that your mom is Makah since she lives in La Push. My mom was Quileute, so either way, I have the gene from her side at least." He shrugs.
I choose to ignore the implications there and keep the focus on Embry. "Well, we can talk to Billy when they wake up and see what he thinks. And if you decide you want to know for sure, Carlisle can probably arrange a paternity test."
"Okay, yeah. If it still seems like a possibility after we talk to him, then I definitely want to know for sure. I grew up as an only child. It would be amazing to find out I have siblings." Embry smiles.
"Cool. Now, I keep hearing all the wolves' stomachs rumble, so if no one objects, I'm gonna go make everybody some lunch and check on Dads," I state.
"Can I help, Bella?" Angela offers. "I want to talk to you."
"Sure thing." I nod and we head to the house.
We decide to make BLTs because we have plenty of lettuce and tomatoes from my dad's vegetable garden and they always keep several pounds of bacon on hand because they've clearly never had any love for their own arteries.
Angela washes lettuce while I chop tomatoes. "Bella, this whole imprint thing confuses me."
"Oh? How so?" I wonder, putting on some music to cover the sounds of our voices in case this is something she doesn't want Jake to hear.
"Well…all the other wolves are in triads or throuples or whatever you want to call them. None of them have imprints. I guess I'm wondering what on earth makes Jake and me so different." She frowns.
"Oh, yeah, I was thinking about that earlier when you were sleeping. I have a few theories if you want to hear them?" I offer, opening a loaf of bread and slathering the slices in mayo while the bacon cooks.
"Yes, please." She nods emphatically.
"Okay, well, I don't think the imprint magic works on vampires. I think when vampires are involved, the vampire mating process takes over, instead.
"When I became a vampire, the depth of emotion I felt for Emmett and Jackson strengthened beyond what I ever thought possible. It was astounding to me because as a human, I already loved them both so deeply, I didn't think there was any room for that love to grow as much as it did. But it happened.
"And now, it feels less fragile and more unconditional. Like, as a human, you always hope your love will be permanent, of course...but as a vampire, it actually feels possible. Like the idea of loving someone forever isn't daunting anymore, it's exciting.
"But it's so big. I don't think the human heart has the capacity to experience something like this. So I think the imprint is like the wolfy way of getting around the limitations of human emotions.
"Like, you and Jacob are now tethered together by a magic that strengthens what you have in a way that is similar in intensity to a vampire mating bond. But because it is so big, there isn't room for much else. Like, your connections to other people are overshadowed by it, right?"
Angela ponders it and nods. "Yeah, as much as it pains me to admit it...when I think about my family now, or my friends, those emotions are so minuscule, compared to what I feel for Jacob. And that scares me." She frowns.
"It should." I nod. "Having one person at the center of your world like that should be terrifying. I once asked a nun why they aren't allowed to marry and instead of spouting some doctrine, she just smiled and said that the only person she wanted at the center of her universe was Jesus. Now, I'm not religious myself, but I think I understand what she meant.
"Giving that much power to one person...placing your happiness in their hands...making them your everything...it is essentially like deifying them. For me, loving two men is a constant reminder that no matter who I choose to spend my life with, I can find happiness.
"People who believe they have one soul mate and that nothing else will ever compare must live in perpetual fear of losing that one great love. And yeah, in some ways, maybe that fear is healthy because it causes them to work harder at preserving that relationship. But hey, so does competition.
"I'm constantly aware of the fact that Jackson and Emmett would be okay without me, as long as they had each other. I know I need to treat them right so that they always want me in the picture. But in our case, that desire to preserve the relationship comes from a place of profound love, not a fear of loss.
"Because I know if I lost them, it would shatter my heart, yes. But I would eventually find someone else to love just as deeply and share just as fulfilling a life with, even if it didn't happen for a long time.
"Honestly, to me, the vampire mating process seems preferable to imprinting. Jake would probably kill me for saying this, but I do think if you ever did decide you wanted to become a vampire, you would find there was room in your heart for all those other connections that are being overshadowed by the imprint right now.
"You wouldn't love Jake any less, of course, you'd probably love him more. But you'd be able to love others more fully as well. And I'm not saying you should rush out and become a vampire right now. You might want to have kids one day, which is something to consider. I'm just saying, keep it as an option, down the line, yeah? Don't rule it out," I advise.
Angela is silent for a long time, likely thinking over everything I've said.
I finish making the sandwiches and stack them on platters to take back out to the beach.
"Thank you, Bella. That makes so much more sense now. I was so worried that our imprint was holding Jacob back from having something like what his friends have been finding. But now I don't feel as worried. This will work fine for us for right now, while I'm human.
"We can have kids if we want to, build a life together, and then have the option to choose immortality if we so desire and see where that takes us. I think I want that, eventually. I can't imagine growing old while our friends stay young and beautiful," she admits.
"Yeah. I can't imagine how hard that would be. It's going to be hard enough the other way around. Watching other people age and die," I confess. "I keep thinking about Micky years from now and what if he chooses to stay human. The idea of watching my son grow old...I can't even fathom it."
"Oh, Bella!" Ang exclaims, throwing her arms around me. I successfully ignore how delicious she smells by not breathing. "Don't even worry yourself about that. He's going to be raised around vampires. I highly doubt he would choose to stay human," she reassures me.
"I hope you're right, Ang." I smile, handing her one of the platters while I grab the other two so we can head back outside.
"I am. I have a good feeling about it," she insists.