The One He Claimed

Chapter 131: Zahn’s Agreement

Sophie

When we hang up with Amelia, I sit back, resting against Hunter’ s chest. His hands are gently rubbing over my stomach, and I- can feel the little game that he and my son are playing, even if it’ s absent-mindedly on Hunter’s side. Every time my stomach flutters, Hunter’s hands move to touch his son. Then when it flutters in another spot, he moves them again to find his son. I can tell by his distracted mind that he’s not doing it intentionally, but I love how connected he already is to our pup. He’s going to make a fantastic father. And that thought makes me want to give him lots and lots of pups.

He leans down and nips at my ear. “I’ll take as many as you’ll give me. And thank you. I intend to be a very present, very good father to all of our pups,” he says.

I turn and look at him, still in awe at his ability to track so many things at once. I’ve been practicing, but it’s really hard.

His eyes focus on me, and he smiles. “You’ll get there. You and your sister both are much stronger than you realize. I’m beginning to think that Nikki is right.”

“About what, exactly?” I ask, snuggling against him again. I love having his warmth at my back, his lips caressing my neck and shoulder, while his hands play with our pup.

“About wanting to allow females to take over ranked positions. Which reminds me, I haven’t offered the G**a position to Penny yet. I wonder if she’ll accept it. She has a lot going on right now.”

“She’ll accept it, and Jaime will stay. I think he just needs time to see that we’re the real deal. Penny will make sure that he knows that, and we’ll look after his sisters, just like we always do,” I say confidently, lifting my neck to give Hunter access. His kisses and soft growls are sending waves of pleasure through my body, my skin raising with goosebumps from the gentle caresses.

“We could call her in here now,” I suggest.

“I’d rather call Zahn. I want to know what he has to say about another planned attack on our pack.”

“Then let’s call him,” I say, snuggling into my mate’s arms as he leans forward and dials Alpha Zahn’s number, putting it on speaker phone.

“Alpha Hunter, have you made your decision?” he asks when he answers.

“Not quite yet, Alpha Zahn. I have question for you. What do you know about Aiden and Alaric working with Koden to attack me and my pack again?”

He sighs. “Give me a moment.”

We hear him moving around. “I need to take this.”

There’s no answer that we can hear.

“Will you be alright for a few moments?” he asks.

“Feel free to never come back,” an angry, hateful female voice says.

We hear rustling and I turn to look at Hunter. That had to be Jocelyn. He nods, agreeing with me.

“Alpha Hunter,” he says, coming back on the phone and sounding exhausted. “Yes, I was contacted by Alpha Aiden wanting to know if I would work with them to go against you.”

I’m surprised that he’s being this honest. I can feel Hunter’s surprise as well, but he still feels reserved.

“And what did you tell him?”

“I told him that I have my own problems, and I don’t need any more, especially from a man who seems to have gotten his life together better than any of us,” he says, irritation clear in his tone.

“You must understand my concern, Alpha. You ask to come to my pack and within a day I hear that several Alphas are planning to rise against me again. It’s very convenient, don’t you think?”

“I understand how it must look to you, Alpha Hunter. But believe me, there is nothing convenient about my relationship with my mate. THAT is my sole purpose for coming to your pack. If you want to lock me in a room and keep me under 24-hour guard, I won’t argue. But…” he sighs, his voice becoming sad. “You heard my mate. She hates me.”

“No offense, Alpha, but you’ve mistreated her badly. I can’t imagine how angry she must be, not just at you, but also at the Moon Goddess who didn’t accept her when she literally threw herself at her mercy. I will warn you, Alpha Zahn, you won’t like my ideas or my way of dealing with your mate. But if you come here, to my pack, seeking my help, you will a**e by my rules and you let me do what I think is best for your mate,” I say sternly. Hunter will make sure our pack stays safe, letting me focus on helping Jocelyn. I need Zahn to know that if his mate chooses to walk away from him, I won’t fight her on that.

“Luna Sophie, I didn’t realize you were on the phone,” he says, surprised.

“I keep no secrets from my mate,” Hunter says.

“Would you…would you be willing to speak to my mate, to let her know that I’m serious about bringing her to see you?” he asks.

“I can’t speak to your intentions, Alpha Zahn, but I will let her know that you have asked to bring her to our pack, and Hunter and I have agreed to allow it,” I say, quickly looking at Hunter for confirmation. He nods.

“Thank you, Luna. That’s all I ask.” We hear rustling again before he speaks, putting the phone on speaker.

“Jocelyn, I have Luna Sophie on the phone.”

It’s quiet a moment. “Luna Jocelyn?”

“I am no Luna,” she spits out.Published by Nôv'elD/rama.Org.

“Whether it was by your choice or not, you are mated to an Alpha so therefore, you are a Luna,” I say gently.

“I rejected him. But he refuses to accept it,” she snarls. Well, it would be a snarl if she wasn’t so weak. However, as weak as her body may be, her mind is sharp, and she is furious.

“Luna Jocelyn, I wanted to let you know that Alpha Zahn has requested to bring you to my pack. My mate and I have agreed. I have also let Alpha Zahn know that he may not agree with my ways, but he will a**e by the rules of our pack while the two of you are here.”

She snorts. “It’s a little late for that. What do you think you can do for me, Luna Sophie?” she asks resentfully.

“I don’t know that I can do anything for you, Luna Jocelyn. But I know that here, in my pack, people find peace. They sleep for the first time in a long time. There is laughter, there is love, and there is space from things you don’t want to be close to,” I say. Better to let Zahn know now what he’s in for.

“He would never agree to that,” she begins.

“I have agreed to it, Jocelyn. I want to fix things between us. Please, let’s do this. Not for me, but for you,” Zahn says, his voice gentler than I expected.

“It’s your decision, Jocelyn. I won’t force you into anything,” I say.

“And your mate agrees with this?” she asks, surprised.

“I agree one hundred percent. I know it’s not the same in all packs, but here, Sophie leads with me, at my side,” Hunter says.

“You’re Sophie Meyers? The Legend? Now marked and mated?” she asks, and I can hear her interest, but also a bit of disappointment.

“I’m Sophie Reynolds now. Hunter marked and mated me in private. We’re fighting for a different way of life, for everyone, not just the ranked females. Come see what we’re creating here in our pack. Most don’t believe it’s real, even when they first arrive. It takes time to see that it’s not a façade. The entire pack has responded to my relationship with Hunter. Our love, our bond, has made our pack stronger.”

“When?” she asks.

I turn and look at Hunter who does some quick calculations in his head. “I need to take care of some things here first. How about two weeks? Does that work for both of you?”

“I’m not going anywhere, apparently,” Jocelyn says sarcastically.

“Yes, that works,” Zahn says, obviously saddened and frustrated with his mate. I don’t feel a bit sorry for him. He did this to himself.

“Okay, we’ll see you two weeks from tomorrow,” Hunter says.

“See you soon, Jocelyn,” I say.

“I guess so,” she says before the line goes dead.

I stare at the phone for a moment, feeling emotionally exhausted and saddened after that call.

“Do you want to talk to Penny now?” I ask Hunter.

He scoops me into his arms and stands. “No. Right now, I want to make love to my mate. I want to remind both of us of what we have. I think we both need it after that call,” he says.

I wrap my arms around him, kissing his neck as he carries me to our bedroom. We spend hours loving each other, touching each other, and laying together. We reinforce our bond once again, both of us thankful that we have the other in our lives, thankful that we fought so that we could have this life together, and vowing to continue to fight so that others can have it as well