Pinned but Fluttering

Chapter 45

Fortunately, Kate’s greeting was warmer; her eyes were sharp and alight with sarcastic humor. I sighed in relief at her somewhat expected reaction to me. I had the feeling I was going to like Kate the best of the three sisters, and I relaxed a little…as did Edward whose pale amber eyes had darkened with suspicion after our encounters with Eleazar and Irina. Kate rolled her eyes in response to his frustrated glance over his shoulder at Eleazar whose eyes had not left me; I smiled briefly as she and Edward shared a moment of camaraderie.  

Of course, one was forced to admit that Tanya was the loveliest of the five vampires. Yet she regarded me with cold eyes and a false smile which barely masked her antipathy toward me. But the moment her eyes shifted to Edward’s face, she was all flirtatious smiles and warm, beckoning glances. I stiffened at her lack of subtlety as Edward greeted her with a smile that seemed only slightly strained. The small circles his fingers massaged into my shoulder did little to comfort me.

I had to admit that vampires were indeed more volatile and possessive than humans; I sensed the strength of emotions in the room, and of course, I was well-aware of my own possessive feelings toward Edward, especially as Carlisle, his brow furrowed with worry at the strange reactions of the Denali family to me, finished introducing me to Tanya.

After Carlisle completed his introductions, Tanya continued to stare (or, more accurately, glare) at me as if she were completely confused by Edward’s attraction to me. But seemingly out of respect for Carlisle, she attempted to restrain herself from asking outright about our relationship.

“How lovely it is to see all of the Cullens paired up at last,” said Kate, shifting her amused gaze to Tanya. “It gives the rest of us hope for the future, does it not?”

Eleazar shot Kate a warning glance as she needled her sister, but Kate just smirked as Tanya sent her a filthy look.

As Tanya, the leader of the coven, did not seem to be keeping up the pleasantries as would apparently be the norm in such a situation, Eleazar stepped in to do the honors in her place. “It’s truly wonderful to see you all again,” he said quietly, then continued, “and to see that you’ve added a new family member.”

“Yes,” Carlisle agreed politely, “Isabella is indeed a treasured member of our family.” His tone, though, was one of warning, and his eyes darted to Tanya and Irina before focusing on Eleazar for a beat longer than necessary.

I loved Carlisle more than ever in that moment; with a few polite words, he had made my position within the Cullen family perfectly clear. I relaxed slightly against Edward, and he pressed a kiss onto the top of my head.

“But of course, you realize that in changing a human and expanding your already large family, you have or soon will come under additional scrutiny by those in power,” warned Eleazar, his eyes still focused on me.

His continued assessment was making me uncomfortable, even nervous. I wanted to hide my face against Edward but didn’t want to increase the stress in the room.

Then Eleazar’s words registered on me, and I froze in panic. Could my becoming a vampire endanger the Cullens in some way?