The Claiming by Cooper Book 4
The Contest by Cooper (Jaxon & Evangeline)
Chapter 3
Jaxon
Preparing for the contest was harder than I thought it would be. I run, a lot. But I don’t run 100 miles, no one does unless you have to. I love my sisters, but they aren’t as interested in training as hard as I am, Raelyn especially. Teagan and Rowan agreed to train with me most days.
However, the biggest surprise, and it shouldn’t have been, was Jordan. “If you have to do it, I should be able to do it too, right?” She asked me when she showed up the first day to run with us.
“Besides, you and I both know you’ll make one hell of an Alpha, we just have to get you a pack.” She said. Have I mentioned how much I love my twin?
At the end of our first run, we go upstairs to the Alpha floor. I’m ready to go shower, but Jordan calls me into her room.
“Okay, I’ve set up a board of all the ranked families and their children, at least the ones that I know. I had to ask dad about some of them and I have to be careful, I don’t know if I’m allowed to help you or not, but I’m calling this being your biggest fan.” She says, opening up the large sheet of poster paper she has.
She’s documented all of the Alpha and Beta families and their children. “I’ve put asterisks next to the ones that I think are going to be your biggest competition.” She says as she puts weights down on the four corners of her paper, holding it in place.
“The obvious guys are Jace, Caleb, Lazio, Stefan and Tobias. But I wouldn’t rule out Cillian, Enzo or Reid. For the girls, I think your biggest competition is going to be Evangeline, Magdalena, Celine and Taylor, other than Rowan and Teagan.”
“Why those three?” I ask, wondering at her choice of the females other than our sisters. “I mean, I get Taylor, she’s a powerhouse, but you didn’t add Brooke and Harper in there.” Brooke, Harper and Taylor are our cousins, the children of Uncle Seth and Aunt Hana. They also have two boys, Griffin, their oldest son, who is due to take over as Alpha in the next couple of months, and Caleb, their youngest.
“Brooke is more like Aunt Hana. She’s laid back and relaxed. And I’m pretty sure that while Harper is joining the claiming that she’s found her mate, an Alpha heir, so I’m expecting her to drop out eventually. Taylor, as you know, is more like mom and Uncle Seth. Intense. As for Evangeline and Magdalena, they are the oldest daughters of Alpha Luke and Luna Katerina. You know Luna Katerina is descended from Alpha royalty, right? That makes their Alpha blood mostly likely stronger than ours.” She says.
“But she’s mated to an Alpha that has Beta blood.” I say.
“True. At best that means their strength levels out to ours as true Alphas. But, from everything I’ve heard, Alpha Luke’s Beta line was long and he comes from a very strong line of Betas, possibly ones like Beta Jared that were second sons of Alphas way back in the day. Also, from what I know of Evangeline and Magdalena, they take after their mother. So, they are going to be competitive.”
“Isn’t there another daughter in that family?” I ask, frowning.
“Makayla. She’s too young to enter the contest, but even if she did. she’s more like Raelyn.”
I look up at Jordan. “You mean she’d be doing this to find her mate rather than claim her pack?” I ask, knowing that’s my sister’s real plan.
“Mate hunting. Exactly. There are a couple of other younger children that will most likely enter, but I don’t think that they will make it past round one and if they do, they definitely won’t make it past round two.”
“That leaves Celine among the females you selected.” I say.
“Yes, she’s 21, hasn’t found her mate yet, or if she has, he’s not an Alpha. She’s the daughter of Alpha Zaire and Luna Gia. She has two brothers, both are strong Alphas in their own right. Alden took over as Alpha several years ago, but Stefan is on my list of your competitors.
“Okay then, what about the other guys? Caleb is obvious and I know he’ll fight hard. You really think Jace is going to be a tough competitor?” I ask her.
“I do. I think he’s been underestimated too long.” There’s something in the way she says it that has me zeroing in on her. Even though we’re fraternal twins, we still have some of the twinning intuition that people talk about.
“Jordan?” I ask, reaching over to cover her hand with mine.
She shakes her head. “We’re here to talk about you.” She says, trying to divert me.
I look at her for a long moment and it hits me. How have I never seen it?
“You want to take Jace as your mate?” I ask her incredulously.
I watch as her lips press together tightly and when she doesn’t answer. I know I’m right. “Well then, he’s a fool. You’d be an amazing mate.”
She leans over, kissing my cheek. “Thanks.” She says softly.
“Does he know?” I ask her. She shakes her head, no.
“He’s dating our cousin, has been for years. Do you think I’d just walk up and say, ‘Oh, hey Jace, my future Gamma, wanna be my mate instead?’ I’m smarter than that, Jax.”
“You are, but apparently, he’s not. He’s chasing someone that refuses to mark him. And let’s be honest. He obviously wants to be an Alpha. So being your mate would be a good thing.”
She shrugs. “Maybe she will mark him if she wins her pack. All I know is that he’s never even given me a second glance.”
She looks up at me, the comers of her eyes pinched. “Can we not talk about this right now?”
“Fine, but this conversation isn’t over.”
“Not much else to say, but okay.”
I look back at her list. “Okay, talk to me about Lazio and Tobias. Why did they make your list?”
“Tobias is the oldest competitor in our generation next to Jace. He’s 22 and comes from Alpha Saul’s pack, now Alpha Tarik’s pack. Tarik has already found his mate, Gianna, Alpha Asher and Luna Mignon’s oldest daughter, so Tobias’s only choice is to become Beta to his brother or find his own pack. They live in those outer regions where the weather is harsh, so I think he’ll have a bit of an advantage competing in what will seem like temperate weather conditions here.”
I nod. “And Lazio?” I ask.
“Same reason that I put Evangeline and Magdalena on that list. He’s their brother and descended from the same royal Alpha line. His brother, Alejandro will take over as Alpha soon. Lazio is just going to make the age cut off, turning 16 right before the competition begins, but don’t underestimate him. He’ll be a tough competitor.”