The Spoilt Beauty And Her Beasts

So naturally, his mood remained very good.

That was why he kept smiling a little.

And that was exactly what made Isabella suspicious again.

When he came back to check the water once more, she looked at him and asked, "You still have not answered properly. Why were you smiling earlier?"

Osiris crouched in front of her and looked at her face first before answering.

Then he said, "Because you looked cute with those cubs."

For one second, Isabella simply stared at him.

Then her face heated up again.

This was because the answer had come out too naturally and too seriously. If he had laughed and teased her, she could have scolded him immediately. But he looked completely sincere, as if telling her that the sky was blue.

So she had no defense.

Finally she said, "You are becoming very smooth for someone who used to live in the mountains."

Osiris looked faintly puzzled. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"That means," Isabella said, trying to regain some pride, "that you should not know how to say things like that."

Osiris thought about it for one second.

Then he answered, "Maybe I only say them to you."

Isabella’s heart jumped so fast that she almost became angry at her own body.

This stupid bird.

So she reached out and flicked his forehead.

The motion was light.

Still, Osiris looked at her as though he had suffered a great injustice.

"Why did you hit me?"

"Because you deserve it."

"What did I do?"

Isabella huffed and looked away. "You talk too much."

Osiris sat there for another moment, clearly still feeling wronged, and then he did something that made Isabella freeze.

He reached out very carefully and laid one hand over her stomach.

The room became quiet.

Because Osiris was so straightforward and so openly emotional that when he touched her like that, all the feeling in him showed without any need for words.

His palm was warm.

Very warm.

And when his fingers moved, they moved gently, tracing the curve of her stomach with a care that made Isabella’s expression soften at once.

He looked down while doing it.

Then he asked, in a quieter voice than before, "Do they move a lot today?"

That question caught her off guard.

Because underneath all his foolishness, there were still moments like this.

Moments when he looked at her stomach and remembered that there were children there.

Children she was carrying.

Children that were becoming more and more real to all of them.

"A little," Isabella answered.

Osiris’s face changed just a little.

The change was small, but she saw it.

There was wonder there.

And also something like helplessness.

Because for all his strength and heat and shamelessness, this was not something he could fight, carry, or fix with his hands. All he could do was touch lightly and ask questions.

That must have felt very strange for him.

So Isabella, who had suddenly softened too much, reached out and touched his hair.

At once, Osiris looked up.

"Why are you petting me?"

"Because I want to."

That answer satisfied him more than it should have.

His eyes brightened immediately, and that only made Isabella want to laugh.

Honestly.

Why was he like this?

The bath was almost ready now, and the room had grown warmer and warmer. Osiris stood and went to make the last adjustments, while Isabella sat there watching him and thinking again about the lion cubs from earlier.

Then a thought rose inside her.

So she asked, "Osiris."

He turned. "What?"

"When babies are born in this world... do they always come out in beast form first?"

Osiris blinked.

Then he looked at her stomach again.

Then back at her.

To be honest, he had not expected that question at all.

So for one second, the great and foolish phoenix simply stood there with a blank face.

That made Isabella narrow her eyes. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Osiris answered honestly, "I never thought about it."

Isabella stared at him in disbelief.

How was that possible?

How had none of these men thought deeply enough about this to prepare her properly?

So she folded her arms and said, "You all are truly unreliable."

Osiris looked offended again. "How is that my fault?"

"I am the one carrying children, and somehow I still know less than all of you."

Osiris opened his mouth.

Then shut it again.

Because she was right.

That made him look even more offended, but this time at himself.

Finally he muttered, "You should ask Cyrus."

Hearing that, Isabella blinked.

Then she thought about it and nodded slowly.

Yes.

That actually made sense.

Cyrus was the father of the snake children in her stomach, so if anyone had a useful answer, it should be him.

At once, Isabella made a mental note to ask him later.

Then she looked back at Osiris and said, "Fine. For once, you said something useful."

Osiris looked as though he had received both praise and insult in one sentence and was still deciding how to feel about it.

That expression made Isabella laugh again.

Then, because the bath was finally ready and because her body truly ached from the whole day, she sighed in relief and said, "Good. You can go now."

Osiris did not move.

Isabella looked at him. "Why are you still here?"

He looked at her. "Because you told me to come."

"That was earlier."

"I am still here."

That was such a stupid answer that Isabella almost forgot her own point.

Then she realized something.

This fool did not want to leave.

Immediately, suspicion returned.

She narrowed her eyes again and said, "What exactly are you planning?"

Osiris looked completely calm. "Nothing."

"That sounds like a lie."

"It isn’t."

"Then why are you standing there like that?"

This time, Osiris’s smile returned.

Slowly.

Brightly.

And in a way that instantly made Isabella feel that he was definitely about to say something shameless.