Chapter Twenty-Six

Just as Jasper opened the front door, his phone rang. Pulling it out, he saw Jacob's name.

"Hi Jacob," he answered, putting it on speaker so the human could hear too.

"Hey Jasper, are you guys all at the lair?" he asked, sounding a little annoyed.

"You mean the family?" he clarified.

"Yeah."

"We are. Well, everyone but Carlisle. Since we're back in town for a while, he went up to the hospital to see if they could use an extra pair of hands while we're here. Why, what's up?"

"I told everyone that your family was back and since the wolves only know your scent and Alice's, they were wondering if we could meet so they can put a smell to a face. You know, just so there are no accidents."

Jasper doubled back to the living room and looked at the others, who were all nodding their agreement, though Rosalie's nose was scrunched up a little. "That's fine. Would y'all feel better meeting somewhere neutral, rather than coming here?"

Jacob let out a relieved sigh. "Could we? Some of the others are a little hesitant. When it was just you and Tink, well…" he trailed off, probably not wanting to offend anyone.

"It's alright, we're the best two anyway," Jasper laughed, ducking out of the way and shielding Bella when Rosalie plucked a book off the coffee table and chucked it at him. "Wherever works best for you is fine by us."

"The treaty line? Same spot we first met you and Alice?" Jacob asked.

At answering nods from his family, Jasper looked at Bella. "Do you want to come?" he asked her.

She nodded with a smile. "Can I tag along, Jake?" she asked into the phone.

"Hey Bells," he said, the smile clear in his voice. "Sure, the more the merrier. Thirty minutes?"

"Yep, sounds good," Jasper agreed. "See you in a bit."

"Cool. See ya," the wolf answered and hung up.

"Do you think I should call Carlisle? If he's free, maybe he should join us. So they get his scent also?" Esme asked.

"Sure," Jasper nodded.

"Bella, would you like to come with me? My phone's in the kitchen and I may or may not have a little something for you," she said with a smile.

"Please tell me those really were your chocolate chip cookies I was smelling? I thought it was just my sweet tooth's wishful thinking," Bella laughed as she and Esme walked out of the room.

Jasper watched her go and frowned when he noticed her limping slightly. Honestly, Edward was lucky he was already gone. Jasper wouldn't mind kicking his ass again. With a sigh, he turned back to the rest of the family, only to stop short when he saw both Rosalie and Emmett smirking at him.

"What?"

"No staring at her ass until you've wooed her properly, Jas," Emmett laughed.

Without missing a beat, Jasper grabbed the game controller off the couch and threw it at his face. "I wasn't staring at her ass, I was watching her limp."

Rosalie's expression darkened. "She winced a few times out in the garage. I think she thought she was hiding it."

"Edward was always so overprotective that whenever she was even slightly hurt - and you know with her equilibrium she was bruised somewhere pretty much all the time - she tried to keep it from him," Alice explained. "He'd go from protective to overbearing in a blink. She couldn't stand it."

Rosalie nodded. "I figured as much."

"Listen, before we go, just a word of caution," Jasper said as he looked at her and Emmett. "We think of Bella as a member of our family, but you need to know that she thinks of the wolves as family too. I know they don't smell great and I know they make our instincts a little jumpy, but when we're all together, just remember that Bella's observant. The girl barely misses a thing. Especially with this, given how Edward used to react any time Jacob or the other Quileutes were mentioned. So no faces, no muttering under your breath, no insults. Don't make her feel stuck between two families who can't coexist."

They both nodded. "You know she actually brought that up in the garage," Rose said quietly. "That you and Alice always treated her friends and family with kindness and respect. It means a lot to her that you never dismiss her feelings the way he did."

Jasper smiled. "It's not like it's much of a hardship. The first few meetings with the wolves we were a little wary, but if you give yourself a chance, I think you'll like them. They're all genuinely good people."

"Think any would spar with me like they did you? Maybe the she-wolf?" Emmett grinned.

"Maybe hold off on that for now," Jasper rolled his eyes. "This dynamic is different than when we met them. There were only two of us then. And we were here trying to keep Bella safe and were training them to fight. They won't automatically be comfortable with you just because they are with us."

"Although I'd pay to see Emmett versus Leah," Alice laughed. "Just the look on his face when she beats him would be priceless."

"Like she could beat me," Emmett scoffed.

"No? She did have Jasper teaching her. And she's the lone female in a pack of seven so you know she felt she had a lot to prove," Alice smiled.

Esme and Bella walked back in the room then, Bella carrying a large tupperware that looked like it was full of cookies.

"Sharing your snacks?" Jasper smiled.

"I can only eat a few, and you know the wolves never turn down free food. I figured I could be gracious and share," she shrugged. "So how are we getting there?"

"We can drive most of the way but we'll have to go the last half-mile or so on foot. Or we can run the whole way. Whatever you prefer," Jasper answered.

Bella tipped her head as she thought about it. "Maybe drive? I'm pretty sore, so I'm not sure about running."

"Of course," Jasper nodded, glad that she was willing to admit that she was in some pain rather than hiding it.

"I feel like running, so how about we meet you at that last turn-off, Jas?" Rosalie asked. "There's enough room to park Bella's truck well off the road."

"Sounds good," Jasper agreed.

Alice and Emmett both opted to run also, with Esme joining them. "Carlisle is going to drive from the hospital. He'll probably park at that same turn-off so you'll likely get there at just about the same time."

Jasper nodded again and the group split. Alice, Esme, Emmett, and Rosalie headed out the back door while Bella and Jasper went out the front. "Wanna drive?" Bella asked Jasper as she tossed him the keys. "I don't know where I'm going."

Once the two were settled in the truck and on their way, Jasper glanced at Bella and reached over to take her hand. "Is this okay?" he asked.

"We've held hands dozens of times before, Jas," she laughed. "You don't need to be cautious with me just because I know what we are now. Everything that was perfectly fine before is still fine. I'll always love holding your hand and I'll always love your hugs."

"Sorry," he smiled. "It's just hard to wrap my head around the fact that you finally know the truth after all this time."

"Remember you said Alice had that first vision of us together where I was already a vampire a long time ago?"

"I do remember that, as a matter of fact. It was only a few hours ago," he laughed.

Bella smiled. "Could it have been in 1987?" she asked.

Jasper thought on it a moment. "Coulda been. You think it might've been when you were born?"

"Yeah," she nodded. "I know that some of what she sees is set in stone, visions she considers fate because they never change, even if the path to get there does. So maybe she saw our fate when I first came into the world."

"It would make sense," he agreed. "And the timing seems about right."

"So am I right to assume Emmett knows the truth now also?" she asked. "I heard him whistling with everyone else."

Jasper smiled. "Yeah, he guessed. Said he's wondered all along if maybe you were with the wrong Cullen."

"So that's the whole family now, huh?" she laughed.

"That's just about everyone, really. Jacob knows, which means the pack will know as soon as he phases with the others."

"Angela knows too, I think. She made a comment recently that my 'forever love' - as she called it - was closer than I thought."

"I think Angela has known just about as long as she's known our secret," Jasper smiled. "At the cookout where she met everyone, she was watching everyone with a little smile and her emotions when she looked at the two of us made me think she had a fair idea what she was seeing."

Bella nodded. "I can see that. She's pretty intuitive. I think she knew I had to put Edward behind me for good before I'd see what was in front of me. Or by my side, anyway. Did I ever tell you about the pause button before I started kindergarten?" she asked.

"The pause button? Nope, never heard that story," Jasper smiled.

Bella went on to tell him about trying to pause life for a while until she was ready to deal with it, and her dad's amusement when he walked in on her frantically pressing buttons on the remote in their living room. How he'd pulled her into his lap and broke the news that pause didn't work for real life and she was going to have to start 'big girl school'. That he then had the unfortunate task of telling her he couldn't come to school with her but he promised to walk her there every day.

"He told me that we had to walk through each day as it came, even if we didn't feel like it. But he said he'd always walk beside me, holding my hand whenever I needed him to," Bella said with a smile and then looked at Jasper. "As all the pieces sort of fell into place about you being my soulmate, I realized that from the very first time I met you, that's what you've done. Walked beside me, holding my hand. Never leading me, never forcing me to follow, but just walking right next to me."

Jasper gave her a soft smile. "I knew I liked your dad for good reason. That's the way this works, you know. We walk through life side by side. Neither of us are ahead or behind the other. We're equal partners. Our future is whatever we decide it should be," he said, giving her hand a gentle squeeze.

"Equal partners. That'll be a novelty for me," she laughed.

As Jasper pulled off the side of the road to park, Carlisle's car pulled in behind them. It took Bella a few moments longer to hop down than it usually did given her sore body, but she still greeted Carlisle with a bright smile. "Fancy meeting you here."

"Hi Bella," he smiled. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm alright," she shrugged. "Thanks for the meds though. I haven't taken the painkiller but that muscle relaxer has helped."

"Good. Don't hesitate to take one or both when you need to. I know you have a tendency to downplay your pain," he said, holding up a hand and smiling when Bella opened her mouth to protest. "You and I both know it's true, young lady."

"Oh, you broke out the Dad Voice," she laughed. "But yeah, alright. I'll follow doctor's orders."

"The others have gone ahead. We've got a little bit of a walk, Bella. Would you like a ride?" Jasper asked as he tucked a small bottle of water in Carlisle's coat pocket.

"Actually, yeah," she nodded. "It's my hip that hurts the most so walking's not so great."

Before Jasper could bend down, Carlisle picked the girl up and put her right on Jasper's back, making her squeak in surprise before laughing. He helped her put her arms around his neck and gently wrapped her legs around his waist. Jasper immediately put his hands under her knees to make sure she wasn't straining any muscles in her effort to hold on.

"Give a girl some warning next time, Carlisle," she laughed as they set off.

"Sorry," he smiled. "It seemed to be the quickest, least painful way to do it."

Because the two vampires knew the wolves hadn't arrived yet, they walked at a human pace to meet the rest of the family.

"What did they have to say at the hospital, Carlisle?" Bella asked, resting her chin on Jasper's shoulder. "Do they have a position open for you?"

"They do," he smiled. "It's not full-time but I should be able to manage a few shifts a week. And I'll be more of a floater, doing anything from surgeries to follow-up appointments in the clinic."

"Do you have a preference?" she asked.

Carlisle hummed thoughtfully. "I tend to prefer surgery, but some of that is because I'm able to catch things other doctors might miss thanks to my heightened senses."

"I wonder what I'll want to do with my life once I'm changed. I'll tell both of you right now that I have no intention of repeating high school ever again," she said firmly. "Once is enough. College, sure. There are always new things to learn. But high school? No way."

Carlisle smiled and nodded as Jasper laughed. "Yeah, I wasn't too broken up about missing it this time around. I don't go nearly as often as the others do. My gift tends to make high school an uncomfortable experience."

"I'd never force anyone in the family to do something they don't want to. Sometimes starting as high-schoolers means we can stay in one place longer but - like with Alice and Jasper this time - there are always choices in our cover story for those who don't want to go that route," Carlisle agreed.

Bella was silently relieved. She couldn't imagine suffering through round after round of high school and she'd been worried the rest of the family would expect that of her. Jasper gave her thigh a gentle squeeze, letting her know he understood where her thoughts had gone, and sent her some reassurance to let her know he was fine with whatever she decided.

"Thanks," she whispered softly.

"Of course," he smiled. "Equal partners, Bella."

Bella pressed a soft kiss on his cheek. "Side by side."

A/N: Happy Thanksgiving to anyone in the States! I'm thankful for each and every one of you who has taken the time to read this:)

Take care, M. x