But I was a good Alpha Mate, whatever that actually meant, and looked serious as he opened the door and I got out. His mate was smart too because I immediately moved behind him without having to be reminded or for him to have to take his eyes off the moron.
Who was getting out of his SUV.
Good grief some people weren’t smart.
He was even still doing wiggles and huffs that made him look like a constipated toddler. His bald head and nearly growling glare should’ve made him look intimidating but I just couldn’t get past the wiggles.
People just weren’t scary once you wanted to ask them if they needed the bathroom.
“You can’t fucking kidnap pups, Alpha asshole or not.” He managed to stop wiggling long enough to shout out the insults but he’d already blown his entrance even if he was nearly Braun’s size. “Guardianship was given to Alpha Otto and was registered with the council. Hand him over.”
Excuse me?
Braun scoffed and rolled his eyes. “Bullshit. Guardianship isn’t finalized until after any inquiry and you guys killed his father. That means inquiry.”
It was good to know there were steps in this situation.
“He’s also asked to join my pack, so that’s got to be taken into consideration as well.” Braun’s tone was confident but he was also making it clear what he thought of the other man. “And there’s the fact that his only immediate relative belongs to my pack.”
All good points which seemed to stump the now confused-looking man.
“He’s ours.” He seemed to think that was all he needed to say. “Alpha Otto claimed him as pack.”
Claimed him?
“He’s not a fucking piece of furniture, moron. Claims for the pack only work on objects like land, not people.” If Braun had been just a bit less of an adult he’d have said duh, but he held himself back admirably. “He’s already started to bond to me, so he wasn’t even fully bonded to your Alpha.”
That was interesting…so was the way it made tall, bald, and broody all confused.
“He’s been claimed by Alpha Otto.” Repeating that wasn’t going to make it more believable, especially when he seemed less confident about it as time went on.
“Again.That’s not how it works. He can’t claim people. Magic doesn’t make slaves.” That time Braun rolled his eyes. “That’s why a wolf has to request to join the pack and the magic judges their intent. Ancestors above. Who’s running your pack?”
That seemed like a good question because SUV guy blinked. “Alpha Otto claimed him.”
We were doing that again?
Really?
It took all I could to keep that off my face but Braun wasn’t trying as hard. “For fuck’s sake. Don’t be an idiot.”
Out of the corner of my eye I could see several of the wolves around us jerk like they were laughing too, but they were quiet and I didn’t think the confused man noticed.
“Alpha Otto claimed him.” Looking even more confused, he finally glanced around the wolves around us. “He said…he said he claimed the pup.”
Were we making progress?
“He can’t.” Braun must’ve thought so too because the frustration in his voice eased. “That is literally not how the magic of the pack works.”
Did the man not understand that?
“The magic that makes me Alpha is literally built from the pack. He cannot just claim someone to be a member of the pack. That is not how the magic works.” Braun paused, giving me the impression he was trying to decide if anything was getting through.
Nothing.
Just blinks, so he tried again.
“That’s why pups are members of the pack in name only until their magic comes of age. Emeric couldn’t have been claimed. He has to do the claiming. Pups or new members are literally the ones claiming the pack.” It was a good explanation as far as I could tell, but I seemed to be the only one who thought it was some kind of BDSM relationship.
