Of course Jacob isn't noble...even when he ran away from his feelings he stayed wolf so he wouldn't have to hurt as a human. He tried to distract himself. He made many many many selfish moves in the series, but I don't think he was wrong. Humans are pretty much all self-serving...with the exception of your Mother Theresa types...we make decisions that benefit us as often as possible.
Thats all Jacob did. He loved Bella...knew she was going to pick another guy and wanted to give himself as best of a shot as he could. So, yeah, he manipulated her and kissed her. She apparently liked it...He obviously LOVED it. Edward, caught in his own words, had to accept it. She did ask Jacob to kiss her, so no broken jaws.
The whole tent scene is my favorite section of the entire series. I just love how its written. If you're familiar with Biblical history at all, think about King Solomon and the two women who claimed a baby belonged to them. Solomon ordered that the baby be cut in half then both women could have an equal share of the baby. The one who wasn't the baby's mother said...do it...pretty much "if i can't have the baby, no one can". The real mom said, give it to the other woman...she loved the baby enough to see it live with another family rather than let it die.
Edward...is like the real mother...he'd rather see Bella with Jacob than unhappy. Jacob is like the fake mom...if she's not his, she's nobody's. In reality, Jacob obviously came around because he was there at the end of the books...but in that tent moment...he was thinking out of pure selfishness.
Ok...i talk way too much...sorry about that, but I'll defend the Edward/Bella/Jacob triangle any day. Without it the books would be far less than they are.
