Splash.
The wooden serving spoon slipped from Ren's paralyzed fingers and plunged straight into the bubbling depths of the fifty-gallon cauldron. Drops of hot elk stew splattered against the rim, but Ren didn't even notice.
She was too busy staring daggers at the massive White Tiger beastman standing next to her, who had just casually invited every predator in this forest area to fight for the right to sleep with her.
Ren immediately grabbed Kael by his thick, muscular bicep. She couldn't actually move him, but she used her grip to yank herself closer, pulling his head down to her level.
"What in the name of Gordon Ramsay are you doing?!" Ren whisper-yelled, her green eyes wide with absolute panic.
Kael blinked down at her, his golden eyes filled with nothing but pure, unadulterated innocence. He looked like a giant, deadly puppy who genuinely thought he had just brought his owner a very nice stick.
