War Claim (The Claim: Book 3)

Chapter 31 - Chloe (Part 1)

She hated him.

Pup or not, he was infuriating.

All she wanted was to dance, was that too much to ask for? She was a big girl and could take care of herself if given the chance. She could probably kick that blond male's butt too if he made advances and wouldn't take "no" for an answer.

She tossed and turned half the night, fuming over everything.

Just three more months, she told herself over and over again.

Surprisingly, her parents greeted her in the morning and acted as if nothing had happened. The next day followed the same pattern.

Did no one tell her parents that she snuck out and went to the dance? She thought for sure Animkii would have ratted her out, but if he did, there was no change in their behaviors to prove it.

She pushed the night of the dance behind her and focused on things she could control—her life and her goals.

She tried not to think about Animkii and what he did. It made her blood boil.

As much as it angered her, she knew he was right. She still hated the fact that she was technically a pup for three more months. Hated being treated like a pup. Adulthood couldn't come fast enough. She could do what she wanted and no one could tell her otherwise.

As time passed, Chloe's training with her father intensified. She pushed herself as far as her body would allow. Once she turned eighteen, she would join the warriors, but only on a part-time basis since she was still in high school. As soon as she finished high school though, it would be full-time, and then she'd set her sights on becoming Head Female Warrior.

She couldn't wait. It was all she could think about. Even while focusing on her studies, her mind would stray to her training and she'd catch herself watching videos on the Internet of professional human fighters battling it out for a title or a championship. She'd watch videos of step-by-step tutorials of moves her father hadn't taught her yet, especially the exotic ones overseas that no one else in the pack might know about. She tried practicing a few on her own in her room but felt confined by the small space and stopped when she almost broke a picture frame on her dresser

Soon, she assured herself. Soon, her birthday would come and everything would change.

***

Her eighteenth birthday fell on the weekend. Perfect way to launch into adulthood with a party on the same day.

When the big day finally came, she leaped out of bed and ran around the house before the sun had even risen. The sky in the east had a purple glow but that that was it.

Her father dragged his butt out of bed—half an hour earlier than usual—and went out with her for their usual morning run before coming back to shower and have breakfast. He took her along the borders and she sniffed about and left her scent but otherwise, everything seemed fine. No hint of a mate yet—and she was quite frankly glad for that. She just turned eighteen—she wanted a chance to enjoy her newfound freedom before being tied down to a mate.

Chloe gathered up everything she needed for her party at the Hall and set out with as many bags of supplies as she could carry by the time her mother was up to make breakfast for her siblings.

She set to work making her decorations and putting them up. Her father came about two hours later with a pickup truck filled with more supplies—a couple of coolers filled with soda, water, and juice boxes, snacks that needed to be assembled on the platters, board games for the little pups to play, some of the larger decorations that she couldn't carry on her own, cleaning supplies, and table cloths.

Once she had finished assembling and putting up her decorations, she got to work cleaning the place—wiping down the tables and chairs in the basement, the serving tables, and kitchen countertops, and then she started assembling the platters of food.

Her father helped with the cleaning and setup before she went back with him to change out of her dirty clothes and into something nice, fix her hair, and put on some makeup. When she was all ready to go, she looked back at her reflections with a smile. She looked like an adult with her brown hair in big loose curls pulled away from her face and clipped to the back of her head. Eyeliner with a bit of eyeshadow made her green eyes pop. She put some peacock feather earrings in her ears that almost touched her shoulders.

Frowning, she tugged at the hem of her purple blouse, pulling it up higher over her cleavage. Damn boobs. Why did they have to be so big?

When she was satisfied with her appearance, she went downstairs where her parents were packing up the last of their food and supplies.

"Daddy," she said as sweetly as she could.

"Oh no, here it comes," her father joked as he turned his attention to her. "What is it, Chloe-bear?"

"Can I get breast reductions for my birthday? Please?"

Her mother laughed while the back of her father's neck started to turn red. He rubbed it and glanced at her mother—she knew where Chloe was coming from.

"I don't know..." her father mumbled, looking more awkward than she'd ever seen him.

"Please! You have no idea how much they suck! I'm not asking for them to be chopped off—Goddess, no—just reduced. They get in the way and hurt my back and—"

"Yeah, yeah, I hear ya, Chloe, really I do. But I think you should wait a bit before making a decision like that. You might regret it later."

She snorted. "I don't see how. They're driving me crazy! I can't become Head Female Warrior with these things bouncing around all over the place, even with the best contraption we can find to keep them down."

He massaged his face and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I can't believe I'm having this conversation with my daughter right now."

Her mother laughed again and stepped in. "Honey, I know the girls can be a pain, but I agree with your father to wait a bit. At least until you find your mate."

Chloe groaned, crossing her arms over her chest. "They're my boobs, not my mate's. I don't care what he thinks."

The redness in her father's neck crept up his ears and to his cheeks. Her mother giggled at her father's expense. "Honey, just wait a bit. Trust me. You might change your mind after you mate gets a hold of 'em."

"I am not having this discussion right now. I am not..." he mumbled, walking out of the kitchen with a pot of food to carry out to the pick-up truck.

Her mother sighed and shook her head at her father's retreating form while Chloe groaned. "I know honey. But procedures like that are kind of irreversible. Stick it out for a few more years and then make a decision."

"Fine." Chloe huffed. "But I'm an adult now and want to be treated like one. No more strict rules and treating me like a pup."

Her mother nodded. "I know, sweetie. We'll talk with your father later about curfews, chores, and whatnot. Let's not think about any of that right now and get you to your party. How's the Hall looking?"

Chloe didn't want to give up on the discussion regarding her freedoms but her mother had a point. Her party was going to start soon and they had last minutes preparation and details to attend to first.

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