Defying the Lycan King (Kira and Derek) novel Chapter 253

Chapter 253: A Blissful Morning.

Ishita bustled into the kitchen at her usual early hour, apron already in hand, and stopped dead in the doorway.

There, standing at the stove with a dark apron tied around his waist, was the Lycan King himself. Derek was whistling a cheerful, slightly off-key tune while flipping pancakes. His sleeves were rolled up, and a smudge of flour dusted one cheek.

"Your Grace!" Ishita gasped. "Oh, no, no. What are you doing?"

Derek glanced over his shoulder and grinned—an actual, bright grin that made him look years younger.

"Cooking breakfast for everyone. Sit down, Ishita. Today, I’m the chef."

"Please, let me. This is my job. You shouldn’t be—" Ishita hurried forward, reaching for the spatula.

Derek shook his head and lifted the spoon out of her reach, whistling on. "Not today, Ishita."

"But—"

"Sit."

Ishita hovered, wringing her hands, and finally took a seat. It’s not that she hadn’t seen her King cook before, but it was the amount of food he was preparing. Derek had never cooked for anyone except the Queen.

Seeing him make so many dishes for everyone, Ishita felt something good must have happened.

As Derek started to reach for an ingredient, Ishita shot up, ready to help, but Derek shot her a mock glare and she raised her hands and sat back down.

Soon, voices drifted in from the hallway.

Nana came first, leaning on Dot’s arm, and stopped short. Claire came in behind her and blinked. Then Declan, then Connor, and Gavin trailing after, and every one of them halted in the doorway wearing the same expression, the look of people who had walked into the wrong house.

Ishita rose to her feet, bowing slightly to the people who had entered.

Nana’s eyebrows shot up. "Am I still dreaming, or is the King of Dravengard the one preparing the breakfast we’ve all been invited to?"

Derek turned from the stove, beaming, spatula raised like a sceptre.

"Good morning, everyone. I’ll be your chef for the day."

Claire let out a bubbly laugh. "Well, this is a lovely surprise! Good morning, Your Grace."

"Good morning, Lady Claire," Derek said. "Pleasure meeting you, by the way."

Claire beamed. "The pleasure is mine."

"Sit, sit," Derek went on cheerfully, waving them toward the table. "Ishita, you as well. Off your feet. Enjoy being served for once."

Ishita lowered herself into a chair, perching on it as though she wasn’t sure if all of it was real.

Declan blinked several times. Connor’s mouth twitched like he was fighting a smile, and even Gavin, usually so composed, looked genuinely stunned.

Nana settled into her chair, grinning from ear to ear. "Should we call Dr Lorenzo again?" she asked. "I fear the fever’s gone to his brain."

The whole kitchen burst out laughing. Gavin laughed openly, then caught Connor’s eye and pointedly stopped, which set Declan off again.

Derek chuckled along with them, sliding a stack of golden pancakes onto a serving plate.

"Very funny, Nana. I’m perfectly fine. Better than fine, actually."

"Are you now?" Claire said, settling in beside Nana, her eyes twinkling. She was every bit as bright as her daughter, and it showed. She tilted her head, studying Derek with a playful glint in her eye.

"Darling, you’re in an apron flipping pancakes like a man who just won the lottery. If this is what domestic mornings look like in Dravengard, I might have to move in permanently and demand breakfast service every day!"

Nana let out a loud cackle, slapping her hand on the table. "You’re crazy, Claire. I like you. I like you very much."

Claire grinned. "It runs in the blood. You needed to see my father."

Nana patted Claire’s hand affectionately. "Oh, I can see exactly where our Kira gets all that sunshine from. You two are like twin rays of light."

Claire laughed, warm and easy. "She got the sunshine from me. The stubbornness, I’m afraid, is entirely her father’s fault."

"Hmm," Nana hummed, eyeing Claire suspiciously. "Are you sure about that, or are you pushing the whole blame on the poor man because he isn’t here anymore?"

The two women fell into easy, laughing conversation, heads bent together, and Derek watched them for a moment over his shoulder, something soft moving across his face.

His grandmother and Kira’s mother, thick as thieves already, chattering away. It was such an ordinary, impossible, precious thing. Months ago the whole of Dravengard had been ash and grief, and now here they were, arguing over whose fault Kira’s temper was.

"More eggs?" he asked, already ladling them out. "Declan, eat. Connor, you look like you haven’t slept, sit down. Gavin, you too, don’t hover by the door like a sentry, you’re making Ishita nervous."

Gavin bowed and sat. Connor sat as far from Gavin as the table allowed, on principle.

"This is... unexpected," Declan said, taking a bite and nodding approvingly. "But good. Very good."

"You needn’t sound so astonished," Derek scoffed.

"But I’m astonished," Declan said. "Should I be worried? Is the world ending? Is this the calm before something dreadful?"

Connor smirked, taking a bite. "Never thought I’d see the day our King showed his comic side."

"Can’t a man cook breakfast for his family in peace?"

Gavin, ever the polite one, simply thanked him quietly, though his eyes held a hint of surprise.

Derek untied the apron and finally sat down among them, looking around the table with clear satisfaction. For the first time in weeks, the weight on his shoulders felt a little lighter.

Kira was giving him another chance, their pup was growing, he would soon be a father, and the people he cared about were here, laughing together again.

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