The Claiming by Cooper

The Claiming by Cooper Book 4

The Beta Trials by Cooper (Jace & Jordan)

Chapter 40 (Nolan)

"Fighter Nolan, might I have a word?" Councilman Jason asks before we can disconnect from the Alpha call.

"Of course, do you want me to call you?"

"If Alpha Jaxon is okay to leave the video on, we can just stay here," he says, and I look up at Alpha Jaxon. "Just turn it off when you're done,"

Alpha Jaxon says, holding his newborn son.

"Did you want me to stay or go, Nolan?" Taylor asks me.

I look at Councilman Jason. "Is there a reason my mate can't stay?" I ask, and I see Taylor's I*ips tip up. She likes it when I call her my mate. It gives me hope for us.

"That is up to you, but I don't see any reason she shouldn't stay, especially when this idea was hers to begin with," he says.

"What idea?" she asks, looking up at the video screen on the wall.

"The idea that the fighters would act as guards during the Beta Trials," Councilman Jason says, looking from her to me. "So, I'd like to know if you'd be willing to offer your services to protect our packs while they compete in the Beta Trials. I would hope that the rogues will be caught and dealt with in the next couple of months, but if not, we'll need all the eyes and ears we canget. The best fighters of all would make those of us on the council feel a lot better about continuing the Trials," Councilman Jason says.

"No, that was a terrible idea," Taylor says, her voice panicked as she turns to me. "You would be at risk, Nolan. I brought this idea up before I knew you. You can't do this," she says, and I can tell that this is coming from a place of fear, but it angers me that she feels that I am so incapable of protecting not only myself, but also others from these rogues.

"I can do this if I choose to, Taylor. This is my decision to make, not yours," I tell her.

"Have you even asked the others?" she snaps at Councilman Jason.

"Yes, I have, and they have all agreed,"

he tells her calmly.

"I agree. Please send me the information Councilman," I say, knowing that Taylor and I are about to have a battle of wills and not wanting an audience for it.

"I will forward it to your email, Nolan.

Thank you," he says before disconnecting the call.

"No, Nolan. I forbid it!" Taylor says and I can feel her Alpha aura in the command.

I grab her and pull her to me. "You are not my Alpha and even if you were, as your mate, your command flows off of me. Do not think that you can control me just because you are an Alpha, Taylor," I growl at her.

"What about as your mate? Would you listen to me as your mate?" she asks, fighting against my hold, but I don't let go.

"I am listening to you. But you haven't given me any reason to decline the work. I am the best in my division, Taylor. That makes me the perfect person to be asked to act as a guard in these events. Even you thought so until your heart got involved."

"You could be injured," she says. "Correct, just like I could be injured in every training exercise I participate in," I counter.

"You could catch this new virus. It could kill you," she says, taking a different approach.

"And I'm willing to have Dr. Braxton check my blood and see if I have the antibodies. If not, I will get the vaccine, as I'm sure it will be offered to not only the fighters, but also everyone participating in the Trials." "What if something happens to you?" she says softly, her fear making her vulnerable.

I stroke her cheek, thinking through my response to her. It is possible that I will get hurt. It's possible that I could be killed, so I won't lie to her about that. But it isn't likely, especially if my other fighter peers are there as well.

"We've never sparred together, but I hear you are a fierce competitor."

"What does that have to do with anything?" she asks softly, her eyes closed as she leans into my hand.

I lean in and k*iss her nose. "I'm top in my division for a reason, Taylor. No one beats me. Perhaps it's time you realized how strong your mate actually is."

She frowns. "You want me to fight you?"

"No, I want you to spar with me. Your lack of confidence in my ability to protect myself and others is insulting to me. You need to realize that I am mated to an Alpha for a reason, and that reason isn't that I need her protection," I tell her logically.

I've noticed that my mate tends to act on her emotions more than her mind. She's extremely intelligent, I'll give her that, and some of this is her youth, but I'm hoping I can teach her, through example, how act on her thoughts and intuition, rather than reacting based on her emotions.

"What is the reason, then?" she asks, her eyes opening as she looks up at me in a way I've only dreamed about until now.

"I don't know yet. Maybe because I was patient, the Moon Goddess decided to reward me," I saw honestly. I feel extremely lucky to have finally found my mate. I would have wanted her anyway, but having an Alpha as a mate makes me think that the two of us are meant to do great things together. Or perhaps, we are meant to complement each other. I can temper her emotions and she can add fun and laughter in my life. Or maybe, it's both.

"Some reward," she says, snorting and rolling her eyes.

"I feel very lucky. So, about that sparring match..."

"Fine. When do you want me to kick your a*ss so we can be done with this argument?" she asks, huffing.

I have a h*ard time not smiling at her. It's cute that she thinks she's going to beat me. I'm excited to see if she's really as good as I've heard. But even if she is, she came in fourth overall in the sparring competitions. I may not have defeated her, but I've defeated the top three.

"How about right now?" I ask her.

I watch as her eyes become shrewd. "And if I win, you won't participate as a guard in the Beta Trials?" she asks me. I anticipated this.

"Fine. But if I win, I get to take you to a fancy dinner and you will wear a nice dress and heels," I say and watch the look of horror that crosses her face.

"There's no way I'm losing now," she says, still looking disgusted.

I've been wanting to see my mate dressed up since I met her. She is always dressed to show her strength and power, never to just be a woman. With me, I want her to just be herself, not an Alpha, just Taylor. To feel like a woman and to allow herself to be treated like the goddess she is to me. "Do you want to change?" I ask her. "Are you changing?" she asks. I look down at my jeans.

"Yes, I'd rather not get grass stains on my jeans."

"Then yes, I'll change too. Meet you outside in 15 minutes?"

"See you then," I say, pulling her in for a k*iss first. We haven't shared many, not with everything going on and her family always around, but when I can, I steal a k*iss from her and I'm never disappointed. Today, she's already primed for our battle, so when I slide my tongue into her mouth, she begins fighting me for dominance. Just like in her fighting style, she goes instantly on the attack, and just like mine, I draw her into a sense of security before I take control. When my tongue begins to dominate her tongue, her l*ips and her entire mouth, she clings to me, and a soft whimper escapes her. When I finally pull back, her l*ips are puffy, her cheeks are pink, and her eyes are glazed.

"Fifteen minutes," I say, stepping back and turning to walk out.

"Wha...?" I hear and I turn to see her fingers on her lips as she watches me. I wink at her before ducking out the door.

Fifteen minutes later, I meet her outside. Several people must have seen one of both of us coming out and they stop to come watch. Gone is the schoolgirl blush from a few minutes ago and back in place is the female Alpha that she is.

"Are you sure about this, Nolan?" she asks me.

"Oh, I'm very sure I want to see you in a dress, Taylor," I say and the warriors around us all ohhhhh at that. I guess that means no one has ever seen Taylor in a dress. "Shut it!" she snaps at them and then turns back to me.

"You have to defeat me first," she says. I smile, and crook my fingers at her, giving her the universal 'come get me' gesture. True to her nature, she comes at me, h*ard.

I go on defense as I take in her moves. I can see that she learned quite a bit from my peers during the contest and her form is fantastic. She's fast, agile, and creative in her approach, keeping me on my toes for a good thirty minutes. Then, I start to see her pattern and once I have it, I begin using my kickboxing skills to counteract them. I can see the moment she realizes that I'm turning the tables on her and that I've started to make my move, taking control of the battle.

She attempts to switch up her style, but she can't get her body to keep up with the changes that her mind is trying to make and now, it only throws her off more. I begin to more easily counteract her moves and then the power shifts and I'm on offense and she's on defense, just trying to stay on her feet.

When I finally see my opening, I take it, bringing her to the ground but catching her as she lands, so I don't hurt her too much. I use my body to pin her and then hold her while she tries to get out of my grasp, until she concedes and finally taps out.

When her body goes slack, both of our chests heaving with exertion, I lift my head to look at her.

"I can't wait to see you in that dress," I say and before she can come back with some snarky comeback, I take her mouth in a hot, dirty k*iss. I don't let up until her arms go around me and she's k*issing me back as ardently as I'm k*issing her