Page 87 of Old Secrets

“I think she wants,” Sanders replied, snickering at his mate’s antics. “I’ll hold down the fort and keep an eye on your foxes until you’re done hunting. Are your herds going to survive the lot of them?”

“No, but I’ve already put in an order for replacements. The Inquisition will relocate excess deer from elsewhere after they pass their health checks.” Desmond eyed me. “No more trouble than you can handle.”

I grinned at him, appreciating that he understood I’d cause trouble because I could. “Sure.”

“Kids,” he muttered before heading out the door and heading off in the direction of his home.

A week of peace did us both a world of good, and for a change, my fox had no interest in ripping off Pauline Thomas’s face when she stepped into the Desmond home. She focused on Jake’s father, and she did the mental equivalent of whipping her tail back and forth in delight at seeing the man again.

Jake sat on the couch, his entire body tense. I lounged on Desmond’s chair, having established myself as the current queen of the sitting room.

As I had a sense of humor, recently honed by dealing with other Fenerec in high number, I fished out my new set of keys from my pocket and tossed them to Jake’s father.

With a laugh, he caught them. “Out back once the niceties are over?”

“Sounds good.”

Either emboldened by the invitation to serve as a practice dummy or he understood my fox adored him, he came over and dropped a kiss on my forehead. “If you’re going to beat the snot out of the wife today, try to limit the bloodshed. Your mother tenderized her verbally before taking a round with her as a fox. Your father refereed with Desmond and Sanders keeping an eye on things. The air has been cleared, so try to play nicely if you can.”

Already tired of my mate’s nervousness over the situation, I went in for the kill. “Six in a litter is not uncommon. You can pay penance through the babysitting of infants who stay infants for ten or more years.”

Jake stared at me with wide eyes.

“I accept your terms. Give a call when you need us, and depending on the situation, we’ll either come out to you or take the little ones to our place by private charter. I’ll send over Mason whenever he’s needed as well. I’m sure Lilith would love to come, too.”

With future childcare secured, I engaged Jake’s mother in a staring contest. “I’m meaner than my mother and father combined, but they have millions of years of experience each. We can do this the hard way. Alternatively, you can begin paying your penance through the adoption of families in need while traveling the world to do good and meet all the families you’re helping. That should adjust your attitude sufficiently. You can even help with the childcare, but I’m armed with parents, and I’m willing to use them.”

After a moment, the woman nodded. “Good. Now, what’s this about Jake being an Omega?”

“That’s my fault, because you didn’t realize or understand he was a submissive. I understand that’s not truly your fault, but the only way to fix him was to put him in a better position. Apparently, that’s a fox thing. Since being a submissive was tearing him apart, I fixed it. Now he’s an Omega, and he’s getting back on his feet.”

“Why not an Alpha?” she asked, tilting her head to the side.

I shrugged. “If he was suited for being an Alpha, he’d be one by now. He had every opportunity to shine as a young dominant. That’s just not his gig. It’s mine. He’ll be the calming influence. I’ll be the gun or sword, whichever is needed. Or, I suppose, a swift kick to the face. He tried his best to make you happy, and it tore him apart. I just didn’t understand what I am and how I could help him—but I was working on it the whole time, I guess.” As I couldn’t afford to back down, nor could I give her an opportunity, I borrowed one of Desmond’s tricks, which involved appearing to be as comfortable and relaxed as possible while on his throne.

The battle of wills lasted a few minutes, with Jake’s tension rising to the point my fox wanted to revert to her old ways and bite a few chunks out of Pauline’s face.

Finally, she heaved a sigh. “Are you going to found your own pack?”

The thought of me running a pack triggered a fit of laughter so intense I fell off the chair and beat the floor with my fist. Even my fox backed off on wishing to show aggression at the thought of being the one in charge.

“I think that’s a no, babe,” Jake’s father said, and he cleared his throat, probably so he wouldn’t join me laughing. “Are you all right, Karma?”

I swallowed my mirth, crawled back on to Desmond’s chair, and struggled to regain my lost dignity. “I’m fine, thank you. To answer your question, Pauline, no. I’m not. We’re going to join forces with Desmond, and he can deal with the bullshit while we handle the dirty work.”

According to Pauline’s expression, she had entered her personal nightmare.

Desmond came into the room with Wendy, and both regarded me with matching expressions informing me I’d done something to earn their ire—if I didn’t explain myself immediately and to their satisfaction.

“What? It’s true. Once Jake finishes learning from Sara, we’re joining forces. You’re skilled at handling bullshit with ease and grace, and let’s face it, I’m skilled at the dirty work. You’re brainy, I’m brawny.”

“No, you’re scrawny and in need of lunch,” Desmond replied, shaking his head. “Wendy? If you take care of the pups, I’ll show the Thomases to the guest bedroom so they can get settled. All I ask is that when you take your adventures outside, nobody gets killed and all injuries are limited to what I can handle with my first aid kit. Sanders will entertain the skulk of foxes until dinner, and by then, I expect everyone to play nicely. Pauline, Sebastian, you’ll find Karma’s parents are completely different people in my home, which is why you were introduced at Sanders’s guest home. The entire family has been traumatized, so I am expecting everyone to be nice and cuddling by dinner. You can be bruised and sore, but everyone will be ready and able to cuddle by dinner. I am hoping I can work with the foxes through your pack, as you do have some excellent submissives. The American foxes have a lot of single members who are interested in meeting with single Fenerec, and now that we know that there shouldn’t be any difficulties with interspecies relations, it’s a good start. We may also need to start asking around for pairings who are willing to serve as sperm or egg donors for the bonded foxes. Yes, you screwed up with Jake, but you can more than make up for it helping Karma’s family escape from extinction and give the American foxes hope of a future, too—they’re only a generation away from extinction, too.”

Pauline nodded. “We can discuss that, and I’m sure we’ll have no problems finding donors within the pack—and with the numbers of children they have at one time, they’ll need the pack helping to care for the children.” Her attention fixed on her son. “We truly had no idea you were submissive, Jake. For that, we’re both sorry.”

Jake glanced my way, and his uncertainty pained me.

I offered him a smile. “Would you like us to clear out for a few minutes so you can be emotional without an audience?”