Your Girlfriend Calls Me Daddy

Chapter 157 - 158 | Ethics Left the Building

My stomach dropped a little. The kiss in the prep room before the match had been impulsive and probably stupid. The way Noel had kissed back, all that fire she kept buried under layers of pride and planning, had been the opposite of stupid. It had been dangerous.

And I wanted more.

"What am I supposed to tell her?" I asked.

"The truth." Cheon sat down with her own plate, arranging her food into sections that didn’t touch. "She already knows about the drain. She felt it herself."

"She thinks it manipulated her."

"Then prove it didn’t." Mera stole another piece of my bacon. "Kiss her again. See if she stops you."

"That’s a terrible plan."

"That’s the only plan." Mera grinned, sharp and knowing. "Short Stack wants you. She just hates wanting you. So you make her want it more until she stops fighting."

Cheon made a disapproving noise. "That’s coercion."

"That’s seduction." Mera’s tail flicked dismissively. "There’s a difference."

"Ethically questionable at best."

"We’re helping him build a harem through supernatural incubus powers." Mera gestured broadly at the three of us. "Ethics left the building when we signed that contract."

I couldn’t argue with that.

Cheon could, apparently. "The contract ensures informed consent and—"

"Panda." Mera’s voice went softer. "He’s gonna sleep with her eventually. The system requires it. You know that."

The air in the kitchen changed. Cheon’s fork stopped moving.

"I know," she said quietly.

I reached over and put my hand on hers. The drain opened just a little, letting her feel what I felt. The warmth. The certainty.

"You’re still first," I told her. "Both of you. Everyone else is just—"

"Everyone else is still everyone else." Cheon turned her hand over and laced our fingers together. "And there’s going to be two more after Noel."

Yeah. There would be.

The quest required seven. I had five if I counted Laurana, which the system apparently did based on the notification that popped up last night. Aurora sat at fifty-one percent and climbing without me even trying. Noel hovered at thirty-eight after that kiss, probably higher now after watching me beat Nolan into unconscious submission.

Two more slots remained empty.

Mera’s tail squeezed my arm. "We’re still okay with this, right?"

"Are we?" I looked between them. "Because it’s getting complicated."

"It was always complicated." Cheon’s thumb traced circles on the back of my hand. "We just know more about the complications now."

"And we’re staying anyway," Mera added.

"Why?"

Mera’s grin went wicked. "Because the sex is incredible and you’re rich."

"Romantic."

"I’m a demon. Romance is against brand."

Cheon rolled her eyes but didn’t let go of my hand. "Because you’re honest. Even when the truth is uncomfortable. And because..." She trailed off, looking down at our joined hands.

"Because?"

"Because I want to." Her voice got quieter. "I want to stay. With you. With this insane situation. Even knowing there’s going to be more people."

Something twisted in my chest. The same thing that twisted every time Cheon dropped the perfect class representative mask and just existed as a person who wanted things.

I stood and pulled her up with me, ignoring the ankle’s protest. My other hand found Mera’s waist and tugged her close. Both of them fit against me like they’d been designed for it.

"I don’t deserve either of you," I said.

"Probably not," Mera agreed cheerfully.

"Definitely not," Cheon added.

"But you’re stuck with me anyway."

"Unfortunately." Cheon’s smile was small but real.

Mera kissed my jaw. "Finish your food. Then we’re testing if the professor’s stat boost actually works."

"How?"

"Sparring." Her grin showed teeth. "If Panda can land a hit, the boost is real."

Cheon pulled back, offended. "I can land hits without supernatural enhancement."

"Prove it."

I watched them square off in my kitchen, Mera’s tail already moving into defensive position while Cheon’s stance shifted into something combat-ready. The casual domesticity of thirty seconds ago evaporated into genuine competitive energy.

"Not in the apartment," I said.

They both looked at me.

"Gym," I clarified. "After I finish eating. Winner gets to pick dinner."

"Deal." Mera was already heading for the bedroom to change.

Cheon lingered, her hand still in mine. "You’re really okay?"

"Ribs are fine. Ankle’s fine. Everything works."

"I meant with Laurana."

Oh.

I considered the question seriously. Was I okay with adding my professor to the rotation? With spending nights in her apartment while she studied me like a particularly interesting specimen? With the fact that she’d retired from being a four-star hero because she got bored and now I was the thing that wasn’t boring?

"Yeah," I said. "I’m okay with it."

Cheon searched my face for the lie. When she didn’t find one, she nodded. "Then I’m okay with it too."

She kissed me softly, just a press of lips with no drain and no heat. When she pulled back, her grey eyes were serious.

"But you need to talk to Noel today. Before Monday."

"I know."

"And Aurora."

"I know that too."

"And eventually Vivian, because your sister is—"

"Not actually my sister," I cut in. "The original Rome’s sister. Who apparently has some extremely concerning fixation issues I inherited along with this face."

Cheon’s expression shifted into something protective and sharp. "If she tries anything—"

"I’ll handle it."

"We’ll handle it," she corrected. Her hand moved to my chest, right over my heart. "You’re not doing this alone anymore."

The weight of that settled somewhere warm in my sternum. I covered her hand with mine.

"Go change. Mera’s gonna get impatient."

Cheon kissed me again, quick and decisive, before heading to the bedroom. I finished my breakfast alone in the kitchen, listening to them bicker about whose workout clothes were whose and whether Mera had stolen Cheon’s sports bra again.

My phone buzzed with a new message.

Unknown: saw ur match yesterday. impressive.

Unknown: we should talk

Unknown: this is Titan btw

I saved the number and typed back.

Rome: about?

Titan: recruitment

Titan: vanguard wants u

Titan: if ur interested