I Abandoned My Beast Cubs for the Protagonist... Oops?-Chapter 73: Is Papa Eating Mama

The hidden spring was a slice of untouched paradise tucked away behind a crescent of weeping willow-like trees.

Crystal clear, slightly steamy water pooled in a natural basin made of smooth, pale stones.

It looked like an expensive, VIP-only hot spring resort straight out of a modern travel brochure, minus the extortionate entry fee.

Under normal circumstances, Bai Yue would have been doing cannonballs into the water. However, these were not normal circumstances. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

"Mama, hurry!" Yòu Lín cheered, already splashing wildly near the shallow end.

The problem wasn’t the water. The problem was the lack of modesty in the beastman world. The moment they arrived, the men had simply shed their animal-hide skirts and woven tops with zero hesitation, completely unbothered by the concept of public indecency.

Bai Yue had shrieked, covered her eyes, and log-rolled into the water while still half-dressed, wiggling out of her garments under the safety of the opaque, bubbly surface.

Now, she was huddled in the corner of the spring, submerged up to her collarbone, clutching her arms around her chest.

She was basically nude. And surrounded by three incredibly attractive, equally nude men.

Her modern sensibilities were screaming.

Across the spring, Yàn Shū, the gentle Red Panda scholar, was floating on his back, his wet hair plastered to his forehead while Ruì Xuě and Yòu Lín used his stomach as a makeshift raft.

Even Hóng Yè, who usually tried to maintain his brooding teenage-angst persona, was laughing as he tackled a small wave.

But the most shocking sight was Han Shān. The Snow Leopard Alpha was actually.....relaxed. He stood waist-deep in the water, his broad, scarred shoulders gleaming in the sunlight.

As Ruì Xuě managed to splash water directly into Hóng Yè’s face, he chuckled.

Bai Yue stared, mesmerized by the rare sight, until a sudden shift in the water’s current snapped her back to reality.

A shadow fell over her, blocking the sunlight.

"Enjoying the view?"

Bai Yue squeaked, sinking another inch into the water until it touched her chin. Zhāo Yàn, the Fox Lord, glided through the water toward.

His crimson hair clung to his neck, and water droplets traced the chiseled ridges of his chest and abdomen.

"Go away!" Bai Yue hissed, her eyes darting around in a panic. She crossed her arms tighter over her chest under the water. "I’m naked! Go away, Zhāo Yàn!"

The Fox Lord paused, the corners of his lips lifting. He tilted his head, his fox ears twitching with amusement. He didn’t stop moving. He closed the distance until he was standing right in front of her, his knees brushing against hers under the water.

"Go away?" he echoed. "Why the sudden shyness, my lovely female? I’ve seen you naked before. In fact, I have a very vivid memory of every single—"

"Shut up!" Bai Yue interrupted, her face flushing so violently she felt like her cheeks were going to spontaneously combust. "That was.....that was different! Just back up!"

Zhāo Yàn didn’t back up. Instead, he reached out, his long fingers gently tracing the line of her wet shoulder. He leaned in close, his breath warm against the shell of her ear.

"Now that our family is together again," he murmured, his voice laced with a heavy heat. "Now that the dragons are gone and the forest is quiet....I can mate with you."

Bai Yue’s brain short-circuited. The bluntness of the beastman world still caught her off guard every single time. She went red, resembling a boiled tomato.

"Go away!" she squeaked again, her voice betraying her by trembling slightly.

Zhāo Yàn’s titled his head. His gaze dropped to her lips. "Should I?" he whispered.

She opened her mouth to yell at him again, but no sound came out. "Go... away..." she managed to breathe out, though it sounded more like a plea than a command.

"Hmm," Zhāo Yàn hummed, clearly not intending to follow orders.

Before she could retreat, his hands slipped through the water, gripping her bare waist. He didn’t waste the opportunity. Zhāo Yàn captured her lips in a kiss, stealing her breath and sending a jolt of electricity straight down her spine.

She instinctively gripped his wet shoulders, melting into the heat of his mouth, the panic momentarily forgotten—

"Is papa eating mama?"

The loud, innocent voice of Yòu Lín cut through the steam.

Bai Yue tore herself away from Zhāo Yàn, her eyes wide with horror.

"Uh oh! I... I!" Ruì Xuě stammered from across the spring, covering his eyes with his paws.

Hóng Yè, currently treading water next to his father, stared at the two of them. His face contorted into an expression of teenage disgust. He looked like he genuinely wanted to vomit right there in the pristine water.

"Gross," the teenager muttered, turning his back. "Can you not do that where we can see?"

Across the spring, the chuckling had stopped.

Han Shān’s icy blue eyes were locked directly on Zhāo Yàn and Bai Yue. The relaxed, happy father from a moment ago vanished, replaced by the intense, territorial Alpha of the Snow Leopard clan.

Without breaking eye contact with the fox, Han Shān turned slightly toward Yàn Shū.

"Yàn Shū," Han Shān said. "Take care of the cubs."

Yàn Shū, who was still floating on his back and looking thoroughly confused by the sudden shift in the atmosphere, blinked. "Oh... okay...?" he replied hesitantly, gathering Yòu Lín and Ruì Xuě closer to him.

Han Shān waded through the chest-deep water, pushing the currents aside until he reached them. He loomed over Zhāo Yàn, casting a massive shadow over both of them.

"Zhāo Yàn," Han Shān said quietly. "I want time with her."

Zhāo Yàn narrowed his eyes, his grip on Bai Yue’s waist tightening fractionally. "Hmm? Why?" the fox challenged, a hint of a snarl playing on his lips. "I was here first, leopard."

Han Shān rolled his eyes. "Just. Please."

Zhāo Yàn clicked his tongue in annoyance, his ears flattening, but he eventually released Bai Yue’s waist.

"Fine," Zhāo Yàn muttered, shooting Bai Yue a smoldering look. "But I am not finished with you."

As Zhāo Yàn swam away to terrorize Hóng Yè, Han Shān stepped into his place. Without a word, he reached out, his large hand wrapping around Bai Yue’s wrist.

"Come with me," he rumbled.

He led her through the water, moving away from the main pool and toward a massive, moss-covered rock formation at the edge of the spring.

It jutted out like a natural partition, completely shielding a small, shallow alcove from the rest of the group.

Once they were safely behind the rock, hidden from the curious eyes of the cubs and the other husbands, Han Shān stopped. He let go of her wrist and turned to face her.

Bai Yue thought she would explode on the spot. What was going on?

Why did he want time with her?

And it didn’t help that the alcove was terribly small! Han Shān was standing very close to her, the water level dipping to his waist here.

With him this close, without any clothes to hide behind, she was hyper-aware of everything. The sheer size of him. The breadth of his shoulders. The way droplets of water tracked down the thick, rock-hard muscles of his chest and abdomen, tracing the paths of old battle scars.

She swallowed hard, her mouth suddenly completely dry despite being submerged in a pool of water.

She quickly turned her face away, staring intensely at a patch of green moss on the rock wall.

"I..." she stammered, her brain failing to string a coherent sentence together. "I... I..."

Han Shān didn’t say a word. He raised a hand, his rough knuckles gently grazing her cheek, guiding her face back to look at him. His icy blue eyes, usually so cold and guarded, were burning with a fire that made her breath hitch.

Without warning, he leaned down, his gaze dropping to her trembling lips, the distance closing until she could feel the chaotic rhythm of his breathing mingling with her own.

And then his mouth captured hers.