Taming the Beast World with a Frying Pan-Chapter 225: Pretty Little Birdy in the Tree

"Need help with that?"

The smooth, incredibly familiar voice startled Ren so badly that her hands slipped.

CLANG!

The edge of the fifty-gallon cast-iron cauldron slipped from her grasp and slammed directly onto her big toe.

"Mother of pearl!" Ren shrieked.

She immediately released the cauldron completely and began hopping around the clearing on one leg, clutching her injured foot while hissing a colorful string of expletives.

A low, melodic laugh echoed through the clearing.

Ren stopped her frantic hopping just long enough to shoot a lethal glare at the intruder. Looking entirely too smug and effortlessly handsome, was Vex. His three fluffy, fiery-orange tails swayed lazily behind him.

"What are you doing here?!" Ren whisper-yelled, her eyes darting nervously up toward the tree canopy. "Are you insane? Kael is right up there in the tree!"

Vex didn’t look bothered in the slightest. He strolled casually past her hopping form, reached down, and effortlessly lifted the massive iron cauldron, setting it perfectly over the roaring fire.

"I am a shaman," Vex purred, dusting off his hands. "Why would I be afraid of an average beastman? Especially one who cannot even shift at that."

Ren froze, her hopping coming to an abrupt halt. She slowly put her injured foot down. Miraculously, the pulsing throb in her toe was already beginning to fade, the accelerated recovery buff she had earned from mating with Altair kicking in at full effect.

"Cannot shift?" Ren repeated, her brows furrowing deeply.

Vex raised his perfect brows, a look of profound amusement gracing his dangerously handsome face. "Did you not know?"

He hummed a soft, knowing sound, taking her stunned silence as confirmation. "Ah. The mighty White Tiger kept the fact that he can no longer shift from his precious mate."

Ren’s mind reeled. She didn’t understand why Kael would hide something so massive from her. She fully expected Syris to lie, plot, and keep secrets—it was practically the Snake King’s way of life—but not Kael. Kael was usually as straightforward as a battering ram.

"Why can’t he shift?" Ren asked, her voice tight.

In her thoughts, the pieces began to click together. Was this another side effect of him refuting the Rite of the Severed Fang to please her? A heavy, suffocating wave of guilt gnawed at her chest. ’Did he keep it from me so I wouldn’t feel guilty?’ she realized. ’So I wouldn’t blame myself for being the reason he can never take his beast form again?’

"You should ask the White Tiger yourself," Vex replied breezily, entirely unhelpful.

He walked slowly around the fire, closing the distance between them. He reached out, his long fingers catching a stray lock of her messy red hair, twirling it playfully.

Smack!

Ren slapped his hand away immediately.

Vex’s orange eyes twinkled with pure, unadulterated mischief. He didn’t retreat; instead, he stepped directly into her space, leaning down until his face was dangerously close to hers, their noses almost brushing.

Ren’s breath hitched in her throat. Her face instantly heated up. Even up close, Vex was breathtaking, his sharp features framed by his vibrant hair.

"Personal space!" Ren complained, trying to step backward.

But Vex was faster. His strong arm snaked around her waist, his hand splaying across the small of her back, keeping her locked right where she was. The distance between them was practically non-existent.

Ren tried to lean her upper body back to distance herself from his face, but as she looked up, she found herself completely lost in his beautiful, mesmerizing orange eyes.

For a long moment, they just stood like that. Ren’s heart was racing a mile a minute. Her mind was frantically screaming at her to slap him, to push him into the cauldron, to run away.

But her treacherous body—hyper-sensitized and buzzing from the lingering arousal of the mating season—was leaning more into his touch, reacting to the heavy, lustful gaze he was giving her.

Vex’s eyes flicked down to her lips, then back up to her eyes. Behind him, his three tails swished in a rhythmic, predatory hypnotic pattern.

A small, wicked smirk formed on his lips. He pulled her flush against him, pressing her soft body against his hard, muscular frame. Through the soft leather lining of her new grey dress, Ren could distinctly feel the rigid, heavy excitement pressing against his loincloth.

"I heard you got yourself a new mate," Vex murmured, his voice dropping an octave. "A very handsome bird."

His eyes darkened with possessive heat as he pressed his erection more firmly into her stomach, causing Ren’s face to redden to the shade of a ripe tomato.

"When will it be my turn, Little Rose?" Vex asked.

Ren’s brain snapped back online. She absolutely refused to let her body lead her down another path of stupid, lust-driven decisions. She gathered all her strength, shifting her weight, preparing to drive her knee squarely into his foxy crotch.

But Vex was always somehow two steps ahead.

Before she could strike, Vex spun her around with dizzying speed. Her back was now pressed firmly against his broad chest, and his hard erection was poking directly into the cleft of her buttocks through her dress.

"Let me go!" Ren hissed, fighting in his hold. She wiggled her hips frantically, trying to break his grip.

Her wiggling only caused a deep, rough groan of raw pleasure to rumble up from Vex’s throat.

"Oh, yes," Vex rasped against her ear. "Keep wiggling exactly like that."

Ren immediately froze like a statue, her heart hammering wildly and her face burning with extreme, mortifying heat.

"Let. Me. Go," Ren gritted out.

Vex didn’t listen. He moved her red hair aside, exposing the crook of her neck. He pressed his nose directly against her skin and deeply inhaled.

He paused, a slight frown of confusion marring his features.

"Why don’t you smell like them?" Vex asked, genuinely confused by the absolute lack of scent on her skin.

Before she could answer, his lips replaced his nose. He ran his soft lips slowly up the column of her throat, sending a shiver of electricity straight down to her toes. Ren’s knees felt dangerously weak, her body betraying her yet again as a soft sigh escaped her lips.

"I am so very curious," Vex murmured against her pulse point. "How did you get the stubborn Tiger to agree to refuting the Rite of the Severed Fang? And even more impressive... how did you get him to agree to you having another mate?"

He trailed his lips up to her jawline.

"I wonder," Vex thought out loud, his tone dripping with fake innocence. "Does the Snake King know all about that pretty little birdy?"

He gently grasped her chin, turning her head so she was forced to look over her shoulder, directly into his cunning orange eyes.

"Tell me, Little Rose," Vex asked, his smirk returning full force. "What do you think will happen if the snake king finds out?"