The Claiming by Cooper Book 5
The Beta Trials by Cooper (Jace & Jordan)
Chapter 75 (Jordan)
Note to me: if I ask Jace for something, I better expect that he will do his damned best to give it to me. If I’m not pregnant after last night, I’ll be shocked. The minute I step out of bed, I know today was going to be trying. I hurt in places I had no idea could hurt. But I don’t care, Jace is finally mine. All mine.
“Yes, I am,” he says, having heard my thoughts as I wash my hair. He steps into the shower with me, wrapping his arms around me.
As sore as I am, I want him again. We’ve spent so many months finding ways to tease and excite the other’s b*ody that the man drew every last little o*rgasm my b*ody had in it last night. But that was hours ago, and my b*ody doesn’t seem to care that I’m sore.
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“Your b*ody needs to rest, my love. I want my pup to start his or her life in a happy place in their mother’s tummy. And if my greedy mate still wants an encore tonight, then I’ll be happy to give her one,” he says, as his f*ingers move into my hair, massaging the shampoo into it.
As good as his f*ingers feel in my hair, I begin thinking of everything that I need to do today as my eyes close. I need to get caught up on what happened after Jace and I left, I need to check on Gianna and Ezekiel, I need to check the number of injured and dead in our pack, I need to find out if they are planning another gathering, I need to find out if there is a hunt for the rogues and most importantly, I need to have an Alpha ceremony for Jace, making him my official partner in the pack.
“That last one can wait,” Jace says, listening in on my thoughts. He pushes me under the water, rinsing my hair. “Actually, the last one is just as important as finding out how many of our pack members are injured,” I say, opening the link and feeling around for my pack members.
“I don’t think we lost any last night, do you?” I ask Jace.
He stops, closing his eyes and opening his own mind to the pack.
“No, I don’t think we lost any.”
“Excellent, then we’ll check on our injured, find out what Dr. Braxton has to say about them, and then we can schedule an Alpha ceremony for you.”
“Jordan…”
“Jace,” I say, cutting him off. “You are now mated to an Alpha. With that comes responsibility and title. You will accept the title just as easily as you accept the responsibility,” I tell him.
He looks at me, one arm wrapping around my waist as the other reaches up to stroke my face. “As long as you know that I don’t care what my title is. I’m your partner in life and in the pack, my title doesn’t matter to me,” he says.
“It matters to me. And it means that we have another problem,” I say, watching him frown.
“What’s that?”
“I am once again without a Beta.”
He snorts.
“What do you think about making Victor our Beta?” I ask him.
“I don’t know. I think he likes being Gamma. But we can ask him. Or we can go to the Beta Trials and see if we like any of the other candidates. I know Victor can do the job of the Beta, but there are still three Alpha females in the competition. I know you have your eye on them,” he says.
“Celine, Gabriella and Haley. Camille will be eligible to compete as well, but she’s only 15. I think our pack needs a more seasoned, or at least a more mature, Beta,” I say.
“Agreed. Let’s ask Victor what he thinks. I doubt he’ll be offended if we select an Alpha female as our Beta. He seemed pretty clear he intended to keep the Gamma position anyway,” Jace says as we step out of the shower.
“What do you think about Gianna being mated to Ezekiel?” I ask him as we dry off.
“I think they have more s*hit to work through than we did,” he says, looking thoughtful. “I don’t know Ezekiel that well, but from what I know, he’s a good man, a good wolf. As long as he doesn’t expect her to terminate this pregnancy, and he’s willing to be a father to a child that isn’t his, I think they have a chance. Although, I guess that also depends on whether or not Gianna gets her wolf again and if she is agreeable to living in a pack.”
“I think she’s willing to live in a pack. She has more family here than she ever dreamed of, plus, her child will be a wolf. He will need the support of other wolves so he understands what he is,” I say. “So, then, what does that mean for Ezekiel? He, like the other elite fighters, doesn’t belong to a pack,” Jace says. “I don’t know. I guess, since we’re breaking all the rules, we could bring her into the pack and not him. Who knows. I’ m guessing that if Taylor finally accepts Nolan, he’ll be part of a pack. Maybe it’s time for the elite fighters to start joining the packs,” I say.
I stop, thinking about it a moment. “We could have the council draft something saying that the packs can’t restrict the elite fighters to only training in their pack. We could make them contract workers and even though they belong to a pack, they can be hired out by other packs or even the bear clans to train them to fight.”
“I like it, but I’m sure there will be a lot of argument about it, especially since there could be a situation, like with the rogues, where a pack that wants to go to war with yours, contracts with a fighter to teach them to fight and defeat you. The Alphas will never go for that, and neither would I,” Jace says, making me smile. He may not realize it, but he’s already stepping into his role as co-Alpha.
“Why are you smiling?” he says, nipping at my n*eck.
“You may not care about the title, but you certainly do act the part,” I say, turning in his arms and wrapping mine around him.
He leans down, rubbing his nose against mine. “Are you happy?”
“More than I ever thought I could be,” I tell him truthfully. Being connected to Jace’s mind, feeling his complete and total adoration and love for me is unlike anything I’ve ever felt before. It’s a bit intoxicating.
“Ready to face the day?” Jace asks, taking my h*and.
“Let’s do it,” I say.
We walk out of our bedroom, facing the day and the rest of our lives together for the first time. As we walk down the stairs, I see my parents, Gianna and Ezekiel in the dining room.
Jace looks at me. “Divide and conquer?” he asks me.
“I’ll take Gianna and Ezekiel; you take the pack hospital and the injured.” I say. “But you better come let my mother give you a hug first. You don’t want her to hunt you down like a dog, do you?”
“Sure don’t,” he says.
We walk into the dining room, h*and in h*and. I jump as the entire room erupts into howls and wolf whistles.
Jace’s smile spreads across his face, but I just shake my head. “You’re acting like a pack of wolves,” I say loudly which only makes them howl louder.
“Let’s see the mark.”
“When do we get our heir?”
“When is Beta Jace’s ceremony?”
The questions are shouted out by the pack members. Jace puts his f*ingers to his l*ips and whistles shrilly, getting everyone’s attention.
“If you want Jordan to answer you, quiet down,” he says, then turns to me, letting me take the lead.
“Here is my mark,” I say, pulling the shirt away from my n*eck.
The room erupts again and then they begin chanting for Jace to show his. When he does, the sound in the room only intensifies.
When it quiets down again, I continue. “I’ll answer the question about Jace’s Alpha ceremony first, because he will be my co-Alpha. We will be equal partners in our leadership of this pack,” I say.
It’s quiet a moment, then Victor lifts his head and howls, the rest of the pack following suit.
“And to answer your question about an heir,” I shout over the noise, making everyone quiet down as I turn to Jace. “If your co-Alpha did his job properly, we’ll have an Alpha heir in the next five months.”
The noise of the cheers, applause and happy howling is so loud that I’m surprised the pack doesn’t bring the walls of the packhouse down.