CEO's Runaway Mate and Her Cubs

«What have you done?» Nate repeated, hearing no answer.

Lara rubbed her eyes and looked back at the cubs. They were acting guilty, like every time they had made some mistake.

It was funny, but why was Nate scolding them?

«We were going to free her,» Scarlet murmured. «But you ruined everything...»

Jaden elbowed her, signalling to shut up.

«Were you? And when? How long has your mother been locked in that room? Which one of you two pushed the door? And... For the Moon Goddess, why in the world did you do that?»

Lara raised her brows, confused. What was going on? Why was Nate so furious? Just because the cubs played a prank on her? It was a little extreme, but nothing happened in the end. She was in the company, safe and sound. Someone would have found her sooner or later.

«Which one was it?» Nate asked again.

He let Lara stand on her feet and, when he was sure she wouldn't fall, he took a couple of steps towards the pups. His eyes were dark and serious, his aura scary and threatening.

The pups started trembling, holding each other's hands. Still, they didn't move a step back. Nor did they confess.

They kept the little secret. For no reason in the world would they betray each other! While they were in a lot of trouble, Nate couldn't help but be proud of how they protected each other. Rather, how one of them protected the other.

He left Lara behind and reached the kids, looking at them from up high. He crouched, and they both closed their eyes in fear. The ears started trembling and twitching every time they felt his movements.

He reached out to Scarlet's hair, messing it up. The contact made her wince, but she didn't dare glare back, for once. She shyly peeked at him, wondering if she could get out of trouble without doing anything in particular.

«Daddy,» she tried, but the cold glance she received made her change her mind. Maybe, it was not the best moment to use the magic word.

«Do not even try it,» he said. «I could tell it was you from the start, little beast. Your scent is on the handle.»

The girl's lips curled down, and Nate realised it was a delicate moment. He had to make a decision and follow it till the end. It was one of those events which changed people's lives. After that, the pups would never look at him in the same way... It was a tough decision to make.

«You're grounded,» he said, still calm. He stopped patting her head and waited for her complaints... which didn't come. It was - most likely - a good sign.

«What does grounded mean?» Scarlet asked, tilting her head.

«It means you did something bad and have to ponder over it. You won't be allowed to watch cartoons for ehm... a week.» He wanted to make it longer, but it was the first punishment from his side. Even if the pups did hurt his mate, they were still pups. They would realise with milder punishments, at least in the beginning.

«No cartoons?» she sighed.

«Exactly. And no shopping. No amusement parks or cinemas. You will stay at home and bore yourself.»

«It's unfair,» she said, glaring at him. «And why can you decide?»

«I'm your father, Scarlet. I do get to decide.»

She glanced at her mommy, hoping to get some support. Unfortunately, Lara was standing behind them, observing but not commenting.

At first, she did desire to stop Nate from punishing her cubs. But then... Then, she had realised that the twins had crossed the line even if they just wanted to play. What if one of them ended up locked and hurt? It was indeed dangerous. Also, it was interesting to observe how Nate interacted with his kids, especially during such a delicate phase as a scolding.

«As for you,» he continued, turning to Jaden.

He patted his head as well, for he couldn't look at them so frightened. They saw him as a dangerous big wolf willing to eat their mommy: getting even scarier was the wrong way to go. He had to be authoritative while keeping calm and approachable.

«You should protect your mother, Jaden. If you want to become a real man, you shouldn't let anyone hurt your mother. And you should stop your sister when she has some stupid idea instead of helping her out.»

The tears in the little one's eyes made him chuckle.

«Am I also grounded?» the pup inquired.

«Of course,» Nate said.

He returned solemn, considering whether to lighten the sentence for Jaden, but, in the end, the boy didn't like cartoons that much. He would have survived that punishment without too much suffering.

«Now you can tell me the reasons,» he added. Other than sensing who among the pups was the culprit, he needed to understand why they acted so oddly against their own mother.

«We don't want you to take our mommy away,» Scarlet explained.

She took a step forward and raised her arms. Following her wishes, Nate picked her up. He realised too late they were making peace just like that... But they weren't arguing in the first place. It was okay to let his grudge vanish and focus on the future.

«So, you decided to lock her in a room far from me,» he said, still confused.

«No, we wanted mommy to get scared and run away from you.»

«As if she would have left for such a small accident,» Nate pointed out.

Then, realising he was indirectly saying they should make even more trouble, he added a couple considerations.

«Your mother isn't as easy to scare. And she won't leave me just because of a stupid door.»

«We would have told her you were the one locking her, so she would have taken us and left,» Jaden said, accepting Nate's hand and walking with them to Lara.

«Where did you even get the idea?»

Scarlet shrugged, and she leaned her head on Nate's shoulder.. Even if she hated that man and wanted him far from her mommy, he knew how to be comfortable.