The One He Claimed by Cooper

Chapter 72: Getting Settled Sophie

Dutton got the twins calmed while | pushed the food into the room. | didn't want to intrude, but | also didn't feel

comfortable leaving them alone yet. So, | grabbed the plate of food that | knew Hunter had made for me, the

plate with all of my favorites, and | sat off to the side, letting Dutton to serve his mates and take care of them.

"You can eat with us, Luna," Tiffany says.

"Oh yes, you don't have to eat alone. You're already giving up tat the party," Tammi adds.

"That's okay. | don't want to intrude," | say.

"Please, Luna. Join us," Dutton says as he serves his mates. | feel like he wants to give the girls a break so they

can eat without making themselves sick with nerves, so I pick up my plate and go to sit with them.

"I'm guessing you don't want any wine since you're expecting?" he asks.

"No, but thank you, Alpha."

"Do you know if it's a boy or a girl?" he asks as he pours the wine, confirming my suspicions that he was letting

the girls settle by focusing the conversation on me.

"We find out tomorrow morning. I'm pretty sure Hunter is

secretly hoping for a boy, but we'll see."

"How did you get pregnant so quickly, Luna? | know you said it's because you love your mate and you enjoy

intimacy, but could that really be all that it is? It's so rare for a Luna to be pregnant so soon,” Tammi asks me,

surreptitiously eyeing Dutton.

"I think, from the little | know about the, let's call them fractured mate bonds, that intimacy isn't as frequent as

what | experience with Hunter. | love being with my mate. | can't get enough of him, and he feels the sfor

me. When I'm with him, | open myself to him. | accept the gifts that he's giving me. It's the way it was meant to

be, | think," | say smiling. "And because of that, and because we were never careful about avoiding a pregnancy,

here | am," | smile, looking down and rubbing my stomach.

"We're very happy for you, Luna. Speaking as an Alpha, | can say that every Alpha wants a male heir, someone

he knows can one day take over the pack for him. But | also believe that your mate will be thrilled to have a little

Sophie running around the pack," Dutton says, smiling at me.

"I believe you're right, Alpha," | say.

"What about you, Alpha? What would be your preference for a pup?" Tiffany asks him.

"Healthy, happy, and loved. That's all that matters, boy or girl, I'll be happy to have a pup, or pups. I'd like to

have more than one and if the two of you acceptas your mate, then we can talk about how many each of

you want. I'd be happy to fill my packhouse with our pups," he says, his eyes shining

possessively while his mates both blush, looking down to try and hide their smiles.

1280 Mooch

"I want three," Tammi says, showing more confidence that I've seen in her yet.

"Then three you shall have," he says, smiling as her smile widens at his words. Then he turns to Tiffany. "What

about you?"

Tiffany raises her chin, looking at her sister, then back at Dutton. "Tammi and | agreed that if we ever found our

mate, that | would be the one who would produce the heir. | don't care how many children | have to have as long

as | have one boy."

"What if you have a boy first? Are you done?" he asks, casually challenging her.

"Well, no," she says frowning.

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"And does that mean that Tammi doesn't get to have children until you have a boy? My first-born son would be

heir to the

pack, regardless of which of you delivered him," he says, looking at them.

"Couldn't we just say that Tiffany's first-born son was heir to the pack?" Tammi asks.

"That would potentially take the right of being Alpha away from one of our sons, Tammi, just because he was

born to you and not Tiffany. That sort of thing breeds contempt among Alphas and brothers. | would never want

one of my sons to be angry or hateful toward another for taking what they feel is rightfully theirs," he says.

I know he's right, but the twins were born into an all-girl family, and they are Betas. The issue of handing over

pack rights to Tiffany's first-born son seems okay in theory, but Dutton is right. Chapter 72: Getting Settled

That's how discontent is started among families, and it wouldn't be the first ta brother killed another to take

over the pack.

| can see that they hadn't considered all of the ramifications of their decisions.

"I believe that you all have a lot to talk about and these sorts of decisions don't have to be made today. You're

still getting to know each other; you're still deciding if you are going to accept Alpha Dutton as your mate..."

"We are?" Tammi asks, looking at Tiffany for confirmation.

"Are you?" Dutton asks Tiffany, obviously recognizing that she's the mouthpiece for the two when it comes to

decision making.

"Luna, how did Alpha Dutton vote at the committee meeting last week?" she asks, not taking her eyes off of him.

"He voted in favor of Hunter keeping his title."

"And how do you feel about public claimings?" she asks Dutton.

"My mind is being changed about them. I'll admit, when | first met Luna Sophie, | was surprised to hear about the

reasons that the public claimings were so traumatic for women. It's different for men and it's different for our

wolves. Not having any sisters, | didn't fully understand the impact that it caused. Now, seeing both of you,

having you here with me, | have no intention of sharing any part of our intimacy with anyone. That is mine, for