Chapter 345: Episode 343: Can I take care of Daddy Ren?

Roxy’s head snapped up, her green eyes narrowing into a fierce glare as she looked at the towering Dragon Alpha. Zarek stood with his thick arms crossed over his chest, his golden eyes entirely unapologetic.

“He called me Zaza, so I zapped his face,” Zarek stated flatly, his deep voice rumbling with absolute logic.

Someone had to discipline him.

Roxy’s mouth opened to unleash a furious scolding, but her brain suddenly processed the specific, ridiculous vocabulary the terrifying Dragon had just used. Zapped.

Roxy violently bit the inside of her cheek. She didn’t mean to laugh, but a sudden, highly inappropriate snort of amusement almost escaped her lips. “Do you even know what that word means, Zarek?”

Hearing the unmistakable edge of amusement in her voice, Ren whipped his head back to look at her. The Fox King leveled a deeply betrayed, highly offended glare at her through his vibrant green eyes.

Roxy immediately straightened her posture, instantly burying her humor. She cleared her throat, shifting her weight as she marched directly over to Zarek’s side. She planted her hands on her hips, tilting her head up to glare at the massive warlord.

“Zaza, baby, you do not hit Ren like that,” Roxy scolded firmly, though she gently rested her hand against his bicep. “He is becoming a father, just like you. You have to be gentle.”

The terrifying, absolute-zero combat aura surrounding the Dragon King instantly completely melted. Zarek’s golden eyes softened into pools of molten devotion. He uncrossed his arms and immediately pulled Roxy flush against his broad, muscular chest, burying his face into her dark curls.

“And I would like to put another baby in you right now,” Zarek murmured, his deep voice dropping into a dark, entirely serious, and heavily possessive purr.

Roxy felt a massive flush creep up her cheeks. She swatted her hands aggressively against his chest. “Be serious, Z! We literally just found out about this one!”

From his spot near the hearth, where he was currently completely buried under a mountain of chaotic toddlers, teenage Drax let out a loud, utterly exhausted groan.

“I am completely not in support of another child,” Drax declared, his brilliant green eyes entirely glazed over with the sheer trauma of endless babysitting.

Zarek lifted his head, tossing a lethal, highly offended draconic glare directly at his teenage son.

“What do you know?!” Zarek barked, his Alpha pride flaring. He aggressively gestured toward the far side of the room. “Look at the wolf! Kaelen has a fucking litter, and now he is matured. I am merely catching up.”

Kaelen, who had been quietly standing near the window, physically flinched. The Wolf Alpha’s icy blue eyes flashed with sudden, intense indignation. He shot Zarek a murderous glare, completely offended by the terminology.

“What do I have to do with this!” Kaelen growled, his fangs baring slightly. “Do not drag my pups into your draconic breeding competition!”

Before the two Alpha Kings could escalate the argument into a physical brawl, Ren pushed himself up from the floor, wiping the blood from his lip. The trickster crossed his arms, his green eyes narrowing petulantly at Roxy.

“Wait a minute,” Ren complained, completely changing the subject. “So she gets to call you Zaza, and I don’t?”

Roxy turned away from Zarek’s chest, leveling a completely neutral, deadpan look directly at the Fox King.

“Yes,” Roxy stated simply.

Ren physically recoiled, clutching his chest as if she had just driven a blade through his heart. “Baby!”

Roxy offered a careless shrug, leaning back against Zarek’s solid warmth. “When I say it, it’s a cute pet name. When you say it to another male warlord, it just sounds gay.”

The entire master bedroom went completely, utterly silent.

The six Alpha Kings and the teenage dragon all exchanged deeply confused, entirely baffled looks. They truly didn’t get this one this time.

“Mama,” Iris piped up. The little wolf pup tilted her head, her beautiful violet eyes wide with innocent curiosity. “What’s a gay?”

Axel, currently pinning his brother to the floor rug, immediately threw his hand straight up into the air. His blue eyes gleamed with the intense, eager pride of a student who knew the answer. “Ooo! I know this one!”

Roxy’s eyes widened in sheer panic. “Axel, baby, please don’t say it—”

But Onyx was faster. The wildly active twin wiggled out from under his brother, his own matching blue eyes bright with realization. “Is it the one where male and male be together?”

Roxy slapped her palm directly over her own face, dragging her hand slowly down her cheeks in absolute defeat.

The reaction from her mates was explosive.

The Alphas physically recoiled in absolute, synchronized horror. The very concept of two fiercely territorial, dominant apex predators engaging in such a thing completely violated every single instinct in their ancient bloodlines.

“How could you think that?!” Torian, Ren, Zarek Kaelen, Syris, and Caspian shouted in perfect, horrified sync, their respective blue and green eyes blown wide.

“Why are you shouting at me!” Roxy barked.

They all instantly pivoted. Four massive, lethal warlords slowly turned their heads, leveling a unified, absolutely murderous glare directly at the Fox King.

“This is all your fault!” Kaelen snarled, his fangs fully exposed.

They advanced on Ren like a highly coordinated execution squad.

Ren’s bravado completely shattered. He scrambled backward, his bushy red tails puffing up in sheer panic as he hit the stone wall. “What did I do?! Caspian, I didn’t even call you a sweet name! Syris, why are you slipping your tongue out like that?! I didn’t call you a name!”

Before the Alphas could physically dismantle the Fox King, Roxy threw herself directly into the line of fire. She stepped squarely in front of Ren, throwing her arms out wide to halt their advance.

“I am pregnant, guys!” Roxy shouted, utilizing her recent trump card. “You are going to make the baby stressed with all this aggressive shouting!”

The effect was instant. The Alpha Kings completely froze in their tracks. Torian’s claws retracted. Syris’s venomous hiss died in his throat. Caspian and Kaelen immediately lowered their shoulders, their protective instincts violently overriding their outrage at the mere mention of stressing the unborn child.

Zarek just watched everything from the side, with his legs crossed on the sofa.

Ren peeked his head out from behind her shoulder. The Fox King puffed his chest out to a ridiculous, highly arrogant degree, a massive, shit-eating grin spreading across his bruised face.

“Yes!” Ren gloated loudly, his green eyes dancing with absolute triumph. “This fox is going to be a father! You all have to be nice to me now!”

Roxy slowly turned her head, looking over her shoulder at the cocky trickster. She offered him a fond, utterly exasperated smirk.

“Clock it, girl!” Roxy laughed, entirely confusing the room once again with her modern slang.

****

By the time the sun dipped below the Iron-Wood tree line, the chaotic morning had transformed into a deeply rich, hearty evening of private celebration.

The pack had moved out to the massive, sprawling gardens near the hot springs. Lanterns glowed warmly in the ancient branches, casting a beautiful, flickering light over the massive picnic spread Kaelen and Dena had prepared.

Sitting comfortably on a mountain of plush velvet cushions on the grass, Roxy watched her family. Her heart felt incredibly, overwhelmingly full.

But she couldn’t help but notice something profoundly beautiful, and slightly unusual, about the pack dynamics tonight. All of her mates, even the usually brooding Zarek and the deeply territorial Torian, were treating Ren exceptionally well.

Torian was actively pouring the Fox King the finest aged wine, and Syris was quietly ensuring Ren had the best cuts of roasted meat. They were treating him with a fragile, deeply respectful reverence that went far beyond the usual banter.

Maybe they have finally learnt to live in harmony together.

Roxy smiled, gently resting her hand over her flat stomach. She assumed they were just honoring his new status as a father. She had absolutely no idea that Zarek had shared the catastrophic truth in the woods, and that her fierce warlords were actively, quietly honoring a man who was knowingly sacrificing his life for her happiness.

It was a tragic, devastating secret playing out behind smiles and laughter.

“Mummy!”

A sweet voice broke her observation. Iris trotted over the grass, utilizing all her strength to carefully carry her one-month-old sister. Tyara, whose striking blue eyes were half-closed with sleep, was surprisingly docile in the older girl’s arms. Walking right beside them was Tanith.

The three girls collapsed onto the velvet cushions right next to Roxy.

“Mummy,” Iris murmured, her violet eyes tracking across the garden to where Ren was currently throwing his head back, laughing brightly at something Torian had just said. “Papa Ren is so pretty. He’s like a princess. Do you think the new baby will be pretty like him?”

Roxy’s gaze softened. She watched the vibrant flash of Ren’s red hair and the pure, unadulterated joy radiating from his green eyes. She slowly rubbed her stomach, a profound wave of love washing over her.

“I don’t know, girls,” Roxy answered softly, her voice thick with emotion. “But whether they look like him or not, I promise you… I will treat this baby like his absolute princess.”

Iris smiled happily, gently rocking Tyara.

But Tanith did not smile.

The toddler snake-shifter was staring intently at the Fox King across the garden. Tanith’s bright green eyes narrowed slightly, her little brow furrowing in deep, innocent confusion.

Tanith turned to look up at her mother.

“Mama,” Tanith whispered. “Daddy Ren smells like something is wrong… Can I take care of Daddy Ren?”

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