Paul, Selene, and Jared looked at Jacob curiously; they studied his face, and the three wolves came to the same conclusion simultaneously; Jacob was imprinted on a vampire. It took everything in Paul not to laugh, he knew Karma was a bitch, but he never thought it would go so far as to pair these two together. But then, again, Selene's Uncle Zeus did control the fates and thought it would be funny.
For her part, when Tanya spotted Jake, she was instantly attracted to him, which she found odd because Tanya could tell that this boy was a wolf. The pair stood there and stared at each other for a moment until Carlisle cleared his throat.
"Tanya, I'd like to introduce you to the newest members of our family," Carlisle said.
He walked toward Paul and Rosalie and put his hand on Paul's shoulder, "This is Paul Lahote, Rosalie's mate."
Those words caught the attention of the other members of the Denali clan. Irena looked between Rosalie and Emmett, "Wait, I thought Rose and Emmett were mates."
Rosalie smiled and took Paul's hand, "Emmett and I were wrong. I'm mated to Paul, while Emmett is mated to Selene," Rosalie looked at her ex-husband and his mate and smiled.
"But they're wolves. I have never heard of two different species mating before," Eleazar commented.
"Well, you have now," Emmett said, "Everyone, I'd like to introduce you to my mate, Selene Clearwater."
Carmen was the first one to react. She immediately noticed the difference between Emmett and Rosalie; they were happier and more at ease with their mates. She could see how each pair fit perfectly together. The brunette vampire smiled at each couple and stepped forward to greet them properly, "Welcome to the family. I am Carmen, my mate Eleazar, and this is Irena, Kate, and Tanya," Carmen said.
Selene smiled and accepted Carmen's offered hand, "Thank you, Carmen, Paul, and I appreciate you welcoming me to your family. Let me introduce another of the wolves from La Push; this is Jacob Black," Selene said, then nudged Jacob forward.
Jake awkwardly shuffled forward and greeted the Denali Coven, but when he got to Tanya, Jake was at a loss for words. He stuttered out a greeting and then blushed profusely. For her part, Tanya thought that was the cutest thing she had ever seen. She never expected that her mate would be so young and inexperienced, but it was a refreshing feeling. Tanya decided that she didn't want to overwhelm Jacob, so she wasn't going to flirt with him overtly, but at some point, they needed to discuss the bond they felt for each other.
After the Denali's met Leah, Percy, and Seth, Carlisle ushered everyone into the living room so that they could discuss what they were going to do about the newborn army. Carlisle explained that the wolves would help them fight and that Jasper had suggested they lead the newborns as far away from the town as possible. So, the clearing where the Cullens played baseball was the perfect place.
"I think that if we saturate the area with Bella's scent, that will lead the newborns straight to us. The wolves will give us an advantage since the newborns don't know anything about them," Jasper explained.
"Meanwhile, Bella and I will be camping in the mountains where I can keep her safe," Edward added.
Selene rolled her eyes, she knew that Victoria would look for Edward and not join in the battle, but there was no reason to tell him. Edward wouldn't believe her anyway. Once the plan was laid out, Alice informed them they still had a few more days to practice before the army arrived. Everyone agreed they would head out to practice in an hour, giving Selene, Percy, and the other wolves time to eat something.
While the others ate, Kate couldn't help but notice that Emmett kept fussing over Selene, ensuring she had enough to eat and that she was comfortable, waiting on her hand and foot. She finally couldn't stand the curiosity anymore and had to ask what was going on. Selene and Emmett shared a look and communicated silently. Should they tell the Denali Coven or not? Selene didn't see anything wrong with it; after all, there was nothing they could do about it.
Selene placed her hand on her flat belly, "The reason Emmett is fussing so much is that we're going to have a baby."
Everyone stared at Selene and Emmett as if they had grown another head, "That's impossible," Eleazar said.
"I guess not, since Selene is pregnant," Emmett added with a grin.
"Are you sure it's yours, Emmett?" Irena asked.
The wolves growled at the insult, especially Leah and Percy, "My sister would never cheat on her imprint. It's impossible," Leah said with a growl and took a step towards Irena.
"I didn't mean to insult you, Selene, but no one has ever heard of a vampire impregnating someone."
Carlisle stepped between Leah and Irena, "We have discovered that male vampires can procreate with humans, so there is no doubt that Emmett is the father," Carlisle explained.
"That's fascinating; I'd like to hear more on this," Eleazar commented.
"Perhaps later. Right now, we need to train to fight this newborn army that's coming for Bella."
The others agree and go to the clearing to receive instructions from Jasper on how to fight. It also gave Jared's pack a chance to familiarize themselves with the scent of the new vampires, so no mistakes were made. While the group was training, Bella and Edward showed up. When Bella got out of the car, she immediately looked for Jacob; she expected him to come to greet her, but Jacob had finally worked up enough courage to talk to Tanya. They had moved to the other end of the clearing to speak about their situation. Jake informed Tanya that he had imprinted on her and what that meant.
"I know this may not be something you want, Tanya, and we don't have to be anything other than friends if you want, but because you are my imprint, I have to be near you. It's a wolf thing. We can't live without our imprints," Jake explained.
Tanya stared at the young shapeshifter. She expected him to be unbearable to be around, but Tanya noticed that Jacob was kind, loving, and from the look in his eyes, wholly devoted to her. That made what she was going to tell him much more manageable.
"Jacob, I'm an old vampire, and I have had many lovers, but I have had anyone look at me the way you do. And I have never felt as drawn to someone as much as I am to you. I know in my heart that you and I are meant to be together. In other words, Jacob, you're my mate as well."
Jacob stood there dumbfounded for a moment. That was the last thing he expected, maybe a close relationship with his imprint but not a romantic one. He certainly wasn't expecting Tanya to tell him he was her mate. Jacob beamed at Tanya and hugged her tightly; he pulled away to look at her, then slowly leaned in to kiss her. While this is going on, Bella is watching from Edward's side. Her brow furrowed, and she looked at Edward, "What's going on with Jake and the blonde vampire?" She asked.
Edward looked at the new couple, "Jacob imprinted on Tanya, and he is her mate."
A wave of jealousy ran through Bella. She may not have wanted Jacob, but Bella did enjoy his attention; now that it was all over, she couldn't help but feel cheated.
Jacob and Tanya walked back to the group, hand in hand, and announced that they were together now. Jacob suddenly noticed Bella and pulled Tanya towards her, "Bella! I'd like you to meet my imprint Tanya Denali. Tanya, this is Bella Swan."
Tanya smiled and shook Bella's hand, "So you're the one Jacob had a crush on and who's in danger. Well, any friend of my mate's is a friend of mine. The Denali coven is happy to help protect you in any way we can."
Bella gave Tanya a strained smile, "Thank you; I appreciate that. Would you excuse me? I want to talk with Alice." Bella said and, without waiting for an answer, left to find Alice.
But when Bella neared the group of women, she heard them talking about Selene and her baby and what they planned on doing for her baby shower. Bella was so jealous of the attention that Selene was getting that used to be on her she decided that when she and Edward went to the mountains, she would persuade Edward to have sex with her and get pregnant. If Selene got this much attention, indeed, so would Bella. One way or another, Bella was going to get the Cullen family to focus on her again. With her plan firmly planted in her mind, Bella joined the group of women.
