The Claiming by Cooper
Chapter 285

The Claiming by Cooper Book 4

The Beta Trials by Cooper (Jace & Jordan)

Chapter 12 (Jordan)

I'm in my office the next morning when there's a knock at my door. I look up and see the woman who has caused me all sort of angst standing there. "Hey Jordan, I know you're getting ready for the Alpha meeting, but could I trouble you for a moment?" Taylor says.

"Sure, Tay, come on in," I say, already pretty sure I know what this is about.

She comes and sits down across from my desk.

"So, I'm not sure if Jace told you, but I'm pretty sure I smelled my mate's scent in your packhouse. We searched everywhere, but we couldn't replace him and Jace thinks that maybe it's someone that comes and goes in your pack. So, I was hoping that, in the next day or two, you could make a list of the people that have been in and out of your pack in the last week or two. The scent was stronger in some places, but I smelled it all over the pack, so definitely not someone in and out, if that helps," she says.

"I did talk to Jace yesterday and I made a list of the people that it could be," I say, handing the list to her.

She looks at it a moment, then looks up at me. "I hope that what happened between me and Jace didn't affect our relationship too much. We never had sex, although I'm sure you know that by now. And I know you rejected him. I'm not sure if you knew that I had asked him if he was still willing to be chosen mates."

She looks at me, but I remain silent. I don't remember Jace telling me that, but I also know that I wasn't willing to listen to him for a long time after I rejected him.

"Anyway, he turned me down. He told me that he needed to prove to himself that he was worthy of being your mate and he's done that, so now, he just needs to prove to you that he's worthy." She looks down at the paper then back up at me. "It's none of my business..."

"No, it's not."

"But for what it's worth, Jace has always been worthy of being your mate. He just needed to figure that out for himself," she continues anyway.

I fold my hands on the desk in front of me. "Why are you telling me this?" I ask her.

"Jace deserves to be happy. For a long time, he thought that he could be happy with me, but now, I think we both realize we're better friends than lovers or mates.

I narrow my eyes at her. "I'm pretty sure I know my Gamma better than you do, but thanks for giving me your insights," I say, dismissing her.

She looks at me a moment then stands and walks to my door. She stops, turning to me. "If you knew Jace better than I did, Jordan, you would have rescinded your rejection by now," she says before walking out the door and closing it behind her.

After she leaves, I sit back thinking. I've been so hurt for so long because Jace and Taylor were together. Then, once I realized he had known all along that I was his mate, I was so angry, so hurt, that I didn't want to be around him.

But he denied Taylor. It can't be because she is now an Alpha. He's been very clear that he wants me, and he doesn't care that I'm an Alpha. It's not my position that's the problem, it's his past.

I rub my eyes and shake off these thoughts. I have too much to do right now to worry about it. I need to focus. I have a packhouse full of Alphas and council members, and there are more of them coming today "Jordan, we have some Alphas coming down the drive," Jace says. Speak of the devil and who pops into your mind link.

'On my way. Do we know if the rooms are ready?'

'They are, I checked with Dalia earlier, we're all set.' Dalia is our Lead Omega and has been running herself ragged to make sure the rooms were ready early for the Alphas coming in. 'Remind me to order her that dress she was looking at,' I say to Jace as I grab my jacket, putting on what I call my 'Alpha attire'.

'Already done, Alpha,' Jace says.

Damn. He really is making himself indispensable.

'Is it working?' he asks, a sultry tone to his voice.

'Maybe, but we have other things to focus on right now,' I say, heading toward the packhouse entrance, saying hello to my pack members and guests. When I get there, Jace has a smirk on his face. I narrow my eyes at him. "Alpha," he says, gesturing for me to precede him outside.

I just shake my head at him.

First to arrive are Jonas, Melinda and their three children. As soon as Melinda gets out of the car, I can already tell she's pregnant again.

"Again?" I say as I walk up to her and hug her, before turning to Jonas and taking their youngest baby from him.

"And who is this?"

"Alpha Jordan, meet Kaiden," Jonas says to me as he lifts a little girl who looks exactly like Melinda out of the backseat, before helping a little boy, who looks just like him out of the car.

I look at Melinda. "Your parents asked if they could come see you while you're here. I told them it's up to you.”

Melinda looks at Jonas. "It's your choice, love," he tells her.

"I'd like to see my father. I'm not sure about my mother," she says.

"I'll let him know. There should be time after dinner each night. I'll have him reach out to you," I tell her.

"Thanks, Alpha," she says, hugging me.

"I'm always Jordan to you, Melinda," I tell her before turning and gesturing to Jace to show them to their rooms. He raises his eyebrow at me, and I look down.

"Oh, right, I guess you want this little one back, don't you?" I say, handing Kaiden to Melinda.

"You look like you were made to be a mother, Jordan. I hope your time comes soon," she says, giving Jace a look as she turns and walks into the packhouse. She's always been extremely intuitive. Jace's eyes have gone dark, and he smiles at me before scooping Ryder up and following Melinda into the packhouse.

The rest of the day is much like yesterday, with Alphas, their Lunas and/or their Betas arriving, until my packhouse is filled to the brim with Alphas.

That night at dinner, I welcome everyone to my pack then I defer to Councilman Jason.

"Good evening, everyone. Tomorrow, we will begin an important Alpha meeting to discuss a new threat to our packs. If you haven't heard, we have at least two rogue packs, now displaced by the new Alphas that are taking over the deserted pack lands. We have a threat to one or both of our female Alphas and we have a problem with the bears. There is much to discuss over the next few days. So please, eat, drink, enjoy Alpha Jordan's hospitality, and we will convene in her conference room at eight o'clock tomorrow morning."